Protector
by DreamGuide
Summary: Serena and Stanton know they should not be with each other, but Fate keeps on bringing them together. They fight through unknown evils, and their own longing to be together. *COMPLEATED.*
1. A Walk in the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these wonderful characters, but the idea and story line of Protector is of my own imagination.  
  
Serena was walking home from her music lesson. It was dark, but not late. She was going to hook up with the other Goddesses at Planet Bang, but decided against it because she was feeling a bit under the weather. Jimena offered her a ride home, but Serena felt safe seeing that it was almost a full moon.  
  
While she was contemplating on which piece of music to choose for he tryout next week, she got that strange feeling that someone was following her. "Stanton," she thought, "Is that you? No, it couldn't be, he wouldn't be following me around after what he has become."  
  
Stanton was a Follower, but of no ordinary kind. He was taken unwillingly by the Atrox when he was just a little boy. Because of this, he still had traces of humanity dwelling in him, fighting for control over the evil. He became one of the leading Followers and also an immortal. But that all changed when his love, Serena, turned him back human. It almost killed him, but it worked. Then the girls were in a fight, and loosing. Stanton knew what to do, but it would have to be the greatest sacrifice the world has ever known. He willingly came back to the Atrox to get his powers back, and willingly lost Serena forever to save her. He did save Serena and the rest of the goddesses from a traitor of the Atrox. Because of what he did, he became the leader of the Atrox, the Dark Prince.  
  
"It couldn't be Stanton, anyway, or else my moon amulet would be glowing." Serena was growing very nervous and is walking much quicker. She remembered what Maggie had told her about sending her mind out to penetrate minds of those near by. What she saw shocked her. It was Bobby, a boy that goes to the same school as she does. He had something terrible in mind. Serena broke out into a full speed run. She dropped her belongings to gain more speed. She had to snap out of Bobby's mind in order to watch where she was heading. "I will take the long way home, I could loose him by then." She could hear Bobby getting lost behind, then his sound was gone and the feeling of being followed was gone. But Serena still ran towards home.  
  
When she got there, she slammed the door and locked it. Collin wouldn't be home for at least another two hours and her dad was away on business. She was alone; at least that's what she thought.  
  
She crept upstairs and went to the bathroom. She washed her face and slipped into some of her most comfortable pajamas. Serena turned the corner into her room, before she could react, that feeling was on her again. A shadowy figure raced at her from her balcony. He grabbed her and threw her on the bed.  
  
His thoughts were screaming at her. How she never said hi to him. How she teased him with her looks. He was on top of her now, looking down on her with crazy eyes. Serena was caught so off guard, she didn't have time to use her powers to control him. She was so frightened she couldn't even scream. She didn't have to.  
  
The balcony doors shot open with an invisible force. Then he appeared, like an angel. But he was furious. Stanton yanked Bobby off of Serena. His anger was great, yet his power was still centered and controlled. The room gave off an eerie silver and blue glow from Serena's moon amulet. Stanton held Bobby about a good two feet in the air. Electrical energy now surged around them. Blue and green surges were illuminating the darkened room. Serena knew by the look in Bobby's eyes that Stanton was messing around with his head. He was showing Bobby his past and all the pain and suffering he had went through. Then Stanton stealthy walked to the balcony, with Bobby still raised in his hands. He threw Bobby over with a bust of might. Serena could feel Stanton brewing a powerful force inside of him. With a bust of electrical energy, Stanton wailed with his mind power, "If you ever think about hurting Serena again, I WILL hunt YOU down. You WILL feel PAIN forever!" The energy was so great that it even struck Serena.  
  
The power subsided and the two were left in the room, together.  
  
"Sorry," Stanton began, taking one step closer to Serena, still on her bed. "I saw him following you and knew what he was going to do. When you split to take the long way, I followed you." His eyes were cool and soothing, but Serena still was shacking. "Is there anything I can get you?"  
  
Serena cleared her throat and weakly said, "C-Collin won't be h-home for anot-ther c-couple of hours." "C-could you st-tay with me till I fall a- asleep?"  
  
Stanton gave a small smile, "I will stay with you till morning. You want me to get anything at all for you?"  
  
Serena shook her head no, and closed her eyes. "I am safe," she thought, "Stanton protects me." She didn't even bother to put up her mind block; he probably knew it already. She fell asleep soon after and started to dream. The dream was horrible; she was being followed in an endless pursuit by a masked figure.  
  
Stanton was watching over her and saw her dream. He buried the dream into the ends of her mind. In its place, he placed sweet memories of early Christmases. The last dream he gave her was one of his own. They were walking alone on a mid summer night's sunset along the beach. "Serena, my love," he began, "I will stay with you forever." It was then that he noticed Serena's moon amulet.it wasn't glowing. 


	2. Morning

Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to write more, this is for you. (Please be kind if you R/R)  
  
Serena woke at the sound of her long line of alarm clocks she has posted around her bed. 'Well, I don't need these anymore' Serena thought, 'Stanton proved to me last night that clocks don't upset him anymore.'  
  
"Hey! Better hurry, I am not waiting forever for you to get in the shower again" Colin was up, and as usual, he was his perky self. "Serena, Now!"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." Serena propelled herself in the general direction of her bathroom. 'I hate mornings.' She thought, 'whoever invented them should die." She moaned in pain from the intense headache that was so obviously from last night's trauma. Serena continued doing her usual morning routine and came downstairs for breakfast.  
  
"So, what did you do last night?" Colin asked, slurping the rest of his cereal. "Go to Planet Bang?"  
  
"Um, no, I just came home. I didn't feel like doing anything else." Serena said, sitting on a kitchen chair.  
  
Colin nodded in agreement, not really paying attention to his sister, or he would have noticed the tear rolling down her cheek. "Want any?" he said between slurps.  
  
"No," said Serena, "I'm not hungry."  
  
Nod from Colin, "sure, whatever." He then looked over his shoulder and noticed, "hey, Jimena is late."  
  
"BEEP, BEEP."  
  
"Ah, there she is, later Serena."  
  
"See you tonight, Remember, Planet Bang!"  
  
"OH yeah, I almost forgot." Colin said with a grin.  
  
Serena walked quickly outside and hastily got into her best friend's car. "Hey chicka, what's up? What's wrong?" When Serena didn't answer, Jimena reached out and put her hand on Serena's shoulder. Serena jumped and looked frightened. "Serena," more sternly, "what happened?"  
  
"Nothing, lets just go, huh?" Jimena just turned off the engine and gave Serena a stern look. So Serena told her the whole story, every detail, down to the dreams planted into her head. After she was finished, Jimena looked like there was a puppy placed in front of her. She leaned forward and just hugged Serena, who jerked back first, but then fell into the hug, sobbing.  
  
"It was so horrible!"  
  
"I know, I know.I'll be okay.shhh.It'll be okay." Jimena soothed. "Stanton would never allow that to happen, don't worry, shhhh.it'll be alright."  
  
They drove to school in silence. Once there, the two walked to their normal meeting spot, where Catty and Vanessa were already waiting. "Oh my God! Serena! You should have came last night! We had so much fun." Said Catty, not noticing the melancholy face Serena had on. "There is this a funny incident involving a Vanessa and a punch bowl when this girl asked Michael out after he played.Serena, are you okay?"  
  
Serena looked like she was in a trance, off in another world. Vanessa reached a hand out to her, and quickly pulled back when she saw Serena's recoil. "What happened?" Vanessa asked, "Did Stanton do something."  
  
"Yes, yes, he saved me." Serena said, back staring far off.  
  
"Saved you? What happened?" Catty and Vanessa said at the same time.  
  
And Jimena told them in a nutshell what Serena had told her, but before the girls had a chance to react, Tianna came up to them.  
  
"Hey guys, great night at Planet Bang, huh..Oh great, what did I miss?" Tianna looked at the four of them with wide-open eyes.  
  
"I will tell you later, at first period" was Vanessa's response. Then the bell rang, and the five were off to their classes. Catty and Vanessa headed the front, followed by Jimena and Tianna, chit chatting about last night's incident with the punch bowl. And Serena was holding up the rear.  
  
'Stanton still must love me, after all that has happened, he still loves me.he saved me after all.' Serena's thoughts consumed her, she wasn't watching where she was going. Without anyone noticing, a hand went out and grabbed Serena's arm and with a sudden pull, she was in the shadows of the school. 


	3. Warning

Serena let out a gasp as a firm hand pulled her into a hold. 

"Shh…it's me." A familiar voice soothed. The arm directed Serena so that she was now facing the person holding her. 

"Stanton? What are you doing here? Trying to scare me to death?" Serena said in a strong whisper. 

"Of course not, I just wanted to check up on you. How are you?" Despite his best efforts of sounding convincing, Serena knew that wasn't the real reason why he came. His gaze far beyond her and he was very obviously distracted. 

"First of all, if you wanted to see if I was okay, you may want to consider doing it a less frightening way. And secondly, you forget that I can read you without going into your mind, what is the real reason, don't lie." Serena said, tilting her head up to give him that look.

"Don't give me that look." Stanton pleaded.

"What look? I am not giving you any look." Serena said, shaking her head slightly. 

"Yes you are," Stanton said, leading Serena further into the shadows. "That look you make when you think you are right and I am wrong" 

"Am I and are you?" Serena said, pulling her arm out of his grasp, "And if so, tell me soon, I can't afford another tardy." 

"Look, something is up. I thought I should warn you. Is it alright if I come over tonight to talk?" Stanton asked, but his gaze returned to that far off way again. 

"Yeah, sure, whatever." Serena said, turning to look at what Stanton was seeing. 

"Alright, go to class, and stick by your friends." 

"Okay, but don't think that…" Serena turned back around and Stanton was gone. 

Serena sighed and went off to class. She was tardy and she did get in trouble. The day went by very slowly and she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her, she also noticed that the shadows seem unusually dark and large. But by lunch, the feeling was going. 'Stanton,' she thought while eating her lunch, pretending to listen to Tianna going on about some punchbowl and Vanessa. 'Stanton has been watching over me lately, not just because of last night, but from before that. It was no coincidence that he just so happened to be there when Bobby stated chasing me.' 

"Serena…"

'He was following me the whole night…he knew something was going to happen to me…"

"Serena!"

'Maybe he didn't know about Bobby, but maybe he was expecting something else to happen…'

"SERENA!"

"What?" Serena shot back into reality.

"I was saying, 'are we still on for Planet Bang tonight?'" Tianna bounced up and down, still new to the whole goddess deal, Planet Bang was a regular, and no need to get all excited about. 

"Oh, God, I forgot." Serena said, slapping her hand on her forehead. "I told someone I would meet them tonight."

Her four best friends', sitting around her at the table, faces fell. "What, we planned on going for weeks." Jimena said. "What's up?

"Nothing, you know what, it's not important. I'll go instead, I did promise you first." Serena said, twiddling her yogurt with the plastic spoon in her hand. 

"You sure? If it's important then you don't have to come…if it has to deal with last night, then you should definitely not go." Tianna said bravely. No one has mentioned what happened since that morning. 

'Should I tell them that Stanton talked to me this morning and warned me of danger, would they understand that I trust him again?' Serena's thoughts were running through her, confusing her even more than she already was. 'He did say to stay with my friends…Why not?' "No, no…nothing like that. Lets all go tonight, in celebration of the strength of the goddesses!"

And they drank to that. 


	4. Planet Bang

'Life is certainly surprising.' Serena thought, walking that short distance between the cop car and her front door.   
Those few short hours she spent that night at Planet Bang were so hectic that they flew by without her noticing. The events of that night flew by in her mind as she reached the front door, unlocked it, waved to the police officer, and went into her house, alone. Colin was still at Planet Bang, answering questions the police needed to know and her father was on another business trip.   
Serena walked slowly upstairs and turned into her room. She grabbed some pajamas, threw her purse on her dresser, and walked back out into the hallway. Again a smile crept on her face as she turned into her bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror thinking, 'What a night!'  
***********************  
As soon as Serena walked into Plant Bang, all her fears and anxiety about Stanton's warning left her, now filled with the beating music. The music consumed. After no time at all, she all but forgot about Stanton's warning. 'If it really was all that important,' she thought while her body was swaying with the music, ' he would have told me right there and then, no need to worry.'   
Michael's band began to play, but Serena had no time to notice, for she was watching an incredibly gorgeous guy watching her. Her body began to twist and sway with the music. Soon, he was walking up to her.  
"May I have this dance?" He asked as his melting smile bled into her soul. His strong arms wrapped around her and they began to move as one. When the song was over, he led her over to the side of the dance floor,   
Serena can only remember three things about their conversation, for she was so enchanted with his aura. The first thing she knows is that his name is Gabriel. The second thing was that he went to the private school just a few blocks from her house. The last (and the most exciting to Serena) was that he had asked Serena out, and she tentatively said yes. ("Friday night? Pick you up at 8?")   
Their conversation, however, was broken abruptly from screams from the crowd on the dance floor. "Back off you bitch!" Came a voice over the shuffle of the crowed, now encircling the dance floor. "That is MY man!" Serena knew that voice...Vanessa!   
"Vanessa!" Serena yelled as she fought her way through the thong of people. She escaped into the empty area where two blond whores were standing in front of The Goddesses; Vanessa being held back by Jimena.   
"He SO is not your man anymore, you let him go. And lets face it, with an ass like that, he shouldn't have to wait around for someone like you." The one blond said while swiping the hair from her eyes. Jimena muttered something in Spanish and Catty and Tianna had fierce looks on their faces. The blond looked at them in a derogatory way then returned her gaze to Vanessa. "Michael needs a real women, not some girl who he has a crush on."   
Jimena let go of Vanessa, throwing her hand in the air. Vanessa pounced on the blond with the attitude. "Ashley, like, get her off of me!" the attacked blond yelled from under the wrath of Vanessa. Ashley sprung into action, jumping on Vanessa's back and grabbed hold of Vanessa's long gold hair.   
"Oh, its on now!" Tianna yelled and jumped into action, following Catty's lead. Jimena was on her way into the battle when she was stopped suddenly by a hand on her arm.  
"Jimena, you can't get into another fight! What would the judge do?" Serena said, holding firm onto Jimena's arm.   
Jimena let out a long sigh and stepped back. The two watched the fight until the sounds of cop cars filled the club, the music had stopped some time ago.   
The cops flooded the room. Acting swiftly and surely, they broke up the fight. The club owner came out to the floor and declared that Planet Bang was closing and that everyone should leave right away if the police didn't need them. After about an hour, the club was empty, the only ones left were five police officers, the two blondes, and The Goddesses.   
Serena was told that she could go home, seeing that she wasn't a witness to the argument before the fight broke out. The police officer offered her a ride home because of the fear he saw in Serena's eyes after suggesting to her to walk home.   
The day ended well, she thought. Met a new guy, got a date, witnessed a killer fight, and got taken home by a police car....  
***************** 


	5. Hunter or Angelic?

Serena washed her face and tied up her curly hair. She slipped into her moon and stars pajamas and headed out for her room.   
She walked into her room and immediately knew that something was wrong. A bright, pearly white light came from her moon amulet. She turned abruptly and met face to face with the cause of the reaction.... Stanton.   
"Scare me to death next time!" She yelled, grabbing her moon amulet, shielding the light.   
"I should think to say the same thing to you." He said slyly, walking forward. He looked dark and dangerous...and incredibly sexy.   
"What do you mean?" Serena asked, looking puzzled as she stared up at him, for now he was right in front of her.   
"I told you I was stopping by tonight. I was worried that they....I was worried that something happened to you" He said, tenderness in his voice but he still looked crossed.  
"Wait, who is they?" She said determinedly.   
"The hunters" he said suddenly looking up, deliberately not looking into her eyes.   
"Hunters? What are--" she stopped abruptly when Stanton threw up his hands in frustration and started pacing in front of her.   
"How can you be what you are, fighting what you are, and yet know nothing about it?" He said, still frustrated and pacing.  
"Excuse me. But I was not volunteering for this job when I got it. And no one has ever really explained to us all of our powers to us or, for that matter, what it is we are really fighting!" Serena knew that Stanton was angry, but she was not afraid to speak her mind, he could probably read it anyway.  
He stopped in his tracks and pointed to the bed. Serena reluctantly sat down where he pointed.  
"There are three different forms of the Atrox. The first and most numerable are the Followers. Second come the Regulators. And third group is the Hunters. Each of the three groups do separate acts to please the Atrox. Hunters are like the Followers in that they convert others to the Atrox. But they are different in that they pick out ones specifically that would most please the Atrox. They are very powerful and most deadly of all three. I heard rumors that there is a competition to convert the Goddess Serena." At this he looked at her for the first time since he started to explain. His eyes were full of worry. "I had to warn you," he said, now showing tenderness in his voice. "I had to let you know."  
Serena was at first skeptical of what Stanton was saying. 'Should I trust him?" She thought. But then he looked into her eyes, telling her to trust him through his mind...and now she did.   
"Listen," he said as he started pacing again, "Have you met anyone new this past week?"  
Serena lifted her head in thought and she only met one new person that she hasn't yet seen before.... "I met a guy named Gabriel tonight at Planet Bang, but I don't think he could be a Hunter"  
Stanton stopped and looked at her, "How can you be so sure?" he asked, not really caring for the answer, he was running threw a list of aliases the most popular Hunters use.   
"I just do..." Serena said innocently.  
Stanton gave her a shocked look. "You have a date with him?!" He asked, the fury resounding in his voice.   
"I don't know how it happened, it just did. We were dancing and then talking, then he asked me out--" Serena was stoped talking when Stanton put his hand up.   
"I know our love is forbidden, but you could at least have considered me..." Stanton stopped too. He looked into Serena's eyes, and she looked into his. They were filled with pain and hurt.  
He broke the gaze and kept pacing.  
"Is it possible that he is just an ordinary guy who finds me attractive?" Serena said in almost a laugh.  
"Possible" was Stanton's reply, "or he also could be and Angelic. A helper among the Atrox. A being that is sent to help someone specifically targeted by the Atrox. Either way, I am afraid, means no good." He stopped abruptly turned to Serena with hope in his eyes and said, " I got to go. I think I may know someone who may know the truth."   
Serena nodded as Stanton went toward the balcony. He turned quickly and said, "Until I talk to you next, stay by your friends." And with that, he turned into shadow and crept out.   
Serena fell back on her bed and fell sound asleep before she had a chance to really ponder the events of the past two nights... 


	6. Strange

Friday: 5:45 PM  
'My, how sloooow three days can go!" Serena thought as she started preparing for her date with the gorgeous Gabriel (2hours, 15 minutes, and 56 seconds to go).   
She was daydreaming all the possibilities of tonight's outcomes. "Dance with you, sure.... Kiss you, sure.... Marry you, why not?" She giggled to herself as she waltzed over to her bathroom to take a bath. She filled the bathtub with steaming water, singing quietly to herself. 'Music!' she thought, 'I should play some music.'   
So while the bathtub was filling, Serena grabbed her stereo and her favorite CD, VAST's Music for the People. She popped the CD in. While the sensual sounds poured over her, she stripped and slowly smeared into the hot water.   
***You look beautiful tonight, Serena." Said Gabriel, circling around her.   
He was looking good as well, wearing black jeans, white undershirt covered only by a black leather jacket. His blond hair fell lightly across his blue eyes. Before Serena had a chance to thank him and return the compliment, Gabriel bent forward and kissed her. His soft, passionate kiss made her melt...***  
Serena jerked awake from her daydream with a surprised look on her face. 'That wasn't Gabriel at the door,' she thought, 'That was Stanton.'   
She had forgotten in all the excitement and wishing for the last three days to pass that Stanton had warned her about Gabriel. Something was after her, but she forgot.   
'No, Stanton's wrong!' Serena yelled at herself, 'He is just jealous because we felt a connection! He probably made the whole thing up, no one is really after me.'  
Serena reassured herself and got out of the tub, wrapped herself in a towel, and stared into the mirror. "Tonight is going to be great!" she said to her reflection. It was now 6:20.  
Serena put on her favorite new outfit and put on some makeup. (Not a lot, just to accent her already beautiful features.) By the time she was done and ready to leave, it was 7:55... and the doorbell rang.  
"Serena!" Collin yelled from downstairs. "Some guy is here, he claims you have a date!"   
Serena walked slowly down the stairs, one hand on the railing and the other lying coolly on her hip. She let a sly smile creep on her face when she noticed that both Collin and Gabriel's jaws had dropped. And they had good cause.  
Serena had a black skirt that reached just above her knees on. It had red jewels embroidered into the shape of flames. Her red top matched the skirt, except the colors were reversed. Her black shoes were shiny and made her feet look, in her opinion, cute. Her hair was loosely pulled back into a ponytail, but with ringlets tickling her face.   
"You, uh, you didn't tell me you had a date..." Collin stuttered.   
"You didn't ask," Serena said simply as she passed by him, into the arms of the awaiting Gabriel, "Don't wait up."  
  
"You look...I mean, you're so..." Gabriel was trying to say, not being very successful, as they were walking to his car.  
"Thanks," Serena started to say, but suddenly stopped when she saw his car. "Is that," she began, clearing her throat, "Is that a BMW Z-3 Roadster!?" Serena pointed to her dream car.  
"Very good, impressed?" Gabriel asked, opening up the door for her.  
"It's my dream car." Serena spurted out. "Where are we going?" She asked, once Gabriel was sitting next to her.  
"It's a surprise...but I think you will like it." And with that, he started the car and they were off.   
  
For ten minutes, they talked about all the same stuff that normal teens start a conversation with when they have their first date. But when the reached the country road that would lead them into another city, the conversation switched to more personal things.   
Gabriel confessed about a past love that broken his heart and how about how he didn't feel attracted to anyone since, that was, until Tuesday night.   
Serena talked about how difficult it was to grow up without a mother. She confessed that it was usually just Collin and her at home because of their father worked all the time. Gabriel seemed to really care.   
Twenty minutes into the car ride, they were laughing and talking just like they were old friends who have just reunited after a long time apart.   
A half an hour into the ride, the car slowed down and then slowly came to a halt.   
"Oh, no." Serena heard Gabriel say to himself, slamming his hands on the steering wheel.  
"What's wrong, has this happened before?" Serena asked, peering over the dash to see the hood.  
"Yes, it has happened lots of times," Gabriel said, unhooking his seatbelt, "We ran out of gas."   
Serena started laughing and shortly, Gabriel joined in.   
"Do you have a cell with you?" Gabriel asked after the laughing died down.  
"Yeah, I should." Serena reached into her black sequenced purse and pulled out a note instead of her cell.  
  
"Borrowed cell, remind me to give back later, Later, Collin."  
  
Was scribbled on the note in what looked like in haste.   
Noticing the note, Gabriel sighed and said to Serena, "Up for a bit of a walk?"  
Serena gave a chuckle and agreed.  
  
"You aren't from around here, are you?" Serena asked after a few minutes of silence. She wanted to know why at sometimes his voice seemed to slip into an accent. They were walking back down the same dark country street they just came from.  
"Uh, no, actually. I am originally from London." Gabriel said in a sad voice.  
"Why did you move to America?" Serena asked, noticing how Gabriel seemed to grow dim with the question.   
"Well, when my parents died, I had to move out here with my uncle and aunt, whom I am living with now."  
"Sorry to hear about that, when did it happen?" Serena asked as she looked into his mind, incredibly, she was blocked from it. "Strange..." She said to herself, for she had never been blocked like that before, only with...Followers..."  
"What's strange?" He asked as a smile returned to his face.   
"Um, nothing..." Since the first time they started talking, she turned her gaze to the road ahead. 


	7. Vow

Serena tried to act normal, but she couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. Her power never yielded to a simple human mind before, she could just go in without their notice. No, the only minds she needed permission to enter were the strong Followers and the awful Regulators. 

'Could it be that the same block exists in Hunter minds? If he is a...a hunter and could block my power...could he also read my mind?' Serena was thinking all this while walking next to Gabriel, who seemed innocent enough, Serena thought, because he is talking about his wonderful childhood back in England. 

"Serena, don't you agree?" Gabriel asked to the spaced out Serena, who was holding her moon amulet. "Serena...I say don't you agree?" Gabriel asked again, looking at her this time. "Serena! Hello!"

"Hmmm?" Serena slightly inclined her head to look at him. 

"I said, don't you agree?" Gabriel said looking astonished that she didn't hear him the first time. "Where were you just now?"

"Huh...Oh...I was, er...thinking...." Serena said as she returned her gaze straight ahead again. 

"Yes, I figured that. About what?" Gabriel asked. Serena noticed that he was looking at her. No, not just looking, glaring.... 

"Oh, you know just--" But before Serena was going to lie about thinking of how nice it would be to have grown up in London, she was interrupted by a roar of a car. 

It was a new, silver Chevy Impala. It slowed as it pulled up to them. The window rolled down and saw at that moment her savior. 

"Need a lift?" Came a smooth, sexy voice in which Serena knew all too well. She couldn't help the look of relief on her face.

"Actually, we're fine thanks..." Gabriel said, never really looking at the car.

"Well, Gabriel, if you don't mind, I am getting tired from walking and we are a bit away from the city..." Serena pleaded. 

Gabriel stopped and looked down at her, a scowl on his face. "If you really want too..."

"Thanks!" Serena said a little more enthusiastically than she wanted. She wanted so badly to sit in the front, but she knew she had to make an appearance with Gabriel, just in case he was a Hunter. She didn't want to make him angry.

Serena hopped in the back seat, behind the passenger side, and Gabriel sat next to her behind the driver. 

"Okay, where too?" Came the smooth voice of the driver as the car screeched away. 

"Well," Gabriel shuffled. "I have to get to a mechanics." He said to the driver, then he turned to Serena, "Do you want to go with me, or do you want to be dropped of at home?"

"If it's alright, I would just rather call it a night." Serena said as innocently as she could. 

Hearing this, the driver put in, "Okay, well" he cleared his voice," where does she live and where is your mechanics?" 

"Well, I think you should drop off Serena first. You'll have to double back, but it would help me rest better." Gabriel stated, trying to sound persistent.

"I am going somewhere, I don't have time to double back." Said the driver. 

"Then maybe you shouldn't pick up people in need of help if you are in a hurry." Gabriel didn't hold anything back this time, he clearly showed his anger and frustration.

The driver turned around suddenly and stared at Gabriel. The effect was immediate; Gabriel relaxed and sat back. He stated the address of his mechanic and remained silent for the rest of the ride. 

Once Gabriel got out of the car, it was as if he suddenly snapped back into reality. He turned to say something to the driver, but the car sped off before he had a chance to utter a word.

When the mechanic and Gabriel were out of sight, Serena crawled from the back seat into the front. 

"What took you so long?" Serena asked with a smile over to Stanton.

He returned the smile. "I gave it an half an hour to make sure traffic wasn't bad." He said simply. "Find out anything?" 

"Not much, just that he grew up in London, England." Serena said with a shrug. 

There was no response from Stanton. After five minutes of silence he turned to her and said with disdain in his eyes, "What aren't you telling me, Serena, what are you hiding?" His gaze returned back to the road, he then turned onto Serena's street. 

Serena bit her lip, "Stanton..." 

"Hmm?" He amused her while he pulled into the deserted driveway.

"Can a Hunter block my power?" She asked followed by the ticking of her tongue ring on her teeth. 

"Only the most powerful." He returned in a sigh. "Shit! How could I have been so blind!" Stanton yelled and then hopped out of the car. In a spit second, he was at Serena's side to open her door. Serena couldn't help but think about how he can be a gentleman to her even while he was obviously angry beyond belief.

Serena walked in front of Stanton, leading him to her porch. She quietly opened the door and walked in. "No one's home, come in" She said to him, looking down at her feet. He followed her in and closed the door behind him.

Serena felt Stanton wanting her as he was following her up the stairs to her bedroom. She felt his breath on the back of her neck, sending chills and wants pulsing through her body. They entered her room and Stanton closed the door behind him.

"Its Zirus, The Heartless, he is famous for going for big sacrifices. He has been bragging about how he would bring down the daughters, but no one took him seriously." Stanton paced up and down her room.

"Why wouldn't anyone take him serious? It's a pretty big threat, especially seeing what his past was of 'big sacrifices'?" Serena asked, sitting down on her bed, watching Stanton pace. 

"He made a similar clam for the last generation of the Goddesses, but failed miserably. He became a laughingstock. He kept making more promises of defeating Goddesses, Angelics and all the rest of the goodness in the world. All of his promises failed."

"But then why should I be worried?" Serena asked not really understanding all that she was hearing.

"He hasn't made a promise like that in years, if he makes one now, that must mean he has a secrete weapon or something." Stanton said coolly, now back into thought.

"Oh, I see." Serena said, looking down at her hands. She finally understood why Stanton was so worried.

Stanton noticed this and sat down next to her. "I wouldn't let anything happen to you, know that. I would rather die myself then to see you hurt."

Serena looked into his eyes. They were looking at her the same way they did before he went back to the Atrox. There was no sign of hate in his eyes, only the sheer force of love, longing and devotion. 

"I have something for you, but only take it if you swear by it." Stanton said in his sexy voice.

Serena nodded and in return, Stanton took out a small ring from his pocket. "Wear this ring, and you would vow yourself to me. You wouldn't date anyone else; you wouldn't love anyone else. It's a promise ring." He said with a hint of pleading in his voice. 

Without a word, Serena immediately place the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly. "Thank you." She only said, silently vowing to everything Stanton had said. She then noticed a new ring on Stanton's own finger. It was the same ring, only made for a man's finger. 

"I must go," Stanton said, getting off the bed. "Let me know if you hear from him." And when Serena nodded yes, Stanton left.

As soon as she heard the front door close, a soft voice whispered in her mind. "I love you." 

'I love you too, Stanton.' 


	8. A Duet with Vast

*** A note to Firedragon fairy::: Tianna IS a new goddess. The sixth book was written about her. She isn't really a goddess to begin with, but after she saved Catty and helped the other Goddesses, Maggie gave her an amulet and she became one. She is telekinetic.  
  
***A note to anyone who cares::: To my estimation, there will be about 10 to 11 chapters to my story. I have the rest of it mapped out in my mind and hopefully I won't be too lazy and take the time to type it out. I used Jon Crosby and the band Vast in this chapter. They are the best band in the world. For the record, Jon wrote the song "I Don't have Anything" and you can learn more about the band at www.realvast.com. They are updating now, but when they are done it will be cool. Okay, here we go, on with the story…  
  
"What do you wear when you are going out with a Hunter?" Serena asked herself as she stood in font of her full-length mirror,  
  
Serena got a phone call an hour ago. Gabriel asked if she would like to spend the day with him. She was a little resentful, but Stanton told her what to do. "Act normal," he said. "Then call me when you hang up."  
  
"Gabriel wants to spend the day walking the streets and eating from venders, can you tell he is from out of town?" Serena tried to pass of a laugh, trying to hide the fact that she was nervous.  
  
"Go along, he is probably just figure you out some, you know, finding out your likes and dislikes. It's in public so don't worry, he can't hurt you. But just in case, I will follow you in the shadows. Are you alright with this?" Stanton said from his line of the phone.  
  
"Well, yeah, but… What should I wear?" Was Serena's reply. She wanted to prove to Stanton he can rely on her to be strong, as strong as he is. She heard a sigh of amusement from the other end and they said their goodbyes and cya laters and hung up the phone.  
  
At ten o'clock the bell rang. "Serena! It's that guy again. Another date?" Collin yelled from the bottom of the stairs. As Serena passed him, he whispered to her, "When are you going to start confiding in me again. I only told one person about Foo Foo."  
  
"I told you, I am not mad you told Jimena about my stuffed animal anymore, this is different." Serena gave the worried Gabriel a smile from her position by the stairs. "I didn't tell you this because I thought you would get all protective. Now, just go out and surf. It's a beautiful day. Cya later!" And Serena placed the surfing thought into his head before he had a chance to refuse. She walked out the door and into the sunlight.  
  
"Since the car is busted, I thought I would be nice just to explore the city on a nice Saturday." And then he let her have it, that smile. Serena, for a moment, forgot all of the suspicion and fear. She was lost in that smile.  
  
She silently followed him as he led her through the familiar streets of LA. They end up at the Third Street Promenade. Venders, singers, and dancers are lining the streets, offering what they have. One particular sound, and acoustic guitar and a solo voice, tricked through the noise and caught Serena's heart. She immediately made her way through the crowed street down to a small circle of people. She could hear the song clearly now and it surrounded her.  
  
"Who is this?" Gabriel asked behind her.  
  
'Funny,' she thought, 'I didn't even realize he was following me.' "Jon Crosby." Serena let his name escape from her lips, only as loud as a soft whisper.  
  
"Who?" Gabriel asked, as if he didn't even care.  
  
"Jon Crosby, lead singer, song writer, and inspiration to Vast. My favorite band." The words slipped out of Serena's mouth, though she was barely aware she was speaking. She was enchanted. When the song finally ended, the crowed erupted in applause and Serena snapped back into reality.  
  
"C'mon, lets move on." Gabriel begged. He started to lead Serena away. Before she had a chance to form words, a familiar voice broke through the applause behind them.  
  
"Mind if I join you?" Said the voice. Serena whipped back around, breaking free of Gabriel's grasp. "You have two guitars, I know all of your songs…" Stanton said with a sly smile.  
  
"Yeah, sure. Any request from the crowd?" Jon asked as Stanton settled down on the stool next to Jon.  
  
Serena couldn't help herself. She called out her favorite song before she had time to think. "I Don't Have Anything!"  
  
"Right, here we go." Jon said and then he struck the first chord, followed shortly by Stanton.  
  
The effect on Serena was immediate. Not only was her favorite star singing her favorite song upon her request, he was playing it with Stanton. Her hips started to sway as Jon started to sing.  
  
"I stood on mountain tops that overlook the world. I can't find anything except a void inside." Jon sang with a sweet tone.  
  
'Funny,' Serena thought, 'This song is a lot like Stanton and me. I don't have anything when I don't have him…' Just then, the strumming became louder as the chorus began. 'Pay attention Serena!' She yelled at herself, ' you missed the fist verse! This probably won't happen more than once in your life.'  
  
Her heart gave a jump when she realized Stanton was singing with Jon for the chorus. "I don't have anything, because I don't have you. I don't have anything yeah."  
  
Serena danced as Jon sang the second verse, but then Stanton sang solo, not taking his eyes off of Serena. "I've been stripped of everything, except some flesh that bleeds. And I've been robbed of everything, except a soul, except a soul that needs…" Jon joined in and their voiced harmonized. "You. Sweet you. I don't have anything, because I don't have you."  
  
The song ended and the crowd burst into applause. Serena thought she was in heaven.  
  
"Any other requests? How about something from Visual Audio Sensory Theater?" Jon said, obviously impressed with the swarm of people building around them. Someone from the back shouted "Three Doors" and then they were off again.  
  
Serena couldn't believe where she was. She completely forgotten about Gabriel. She looked around for him halfway through the song, he was standing off to the side, looking around, wishing he were someplace else. She tried to penetrate his mind again, but she was blocked. She gave a small sigh and returned her attention to the beautiful music being made in front of her.  
  
After what seemed like minutes, but were actually hours, Jon apologized for having to leave. He shook Stanton's hand and gave him an autograph. When he passed by, he gave Serena a smile that made her melt. 'He should smile more often,' she thought as she watched him leave.  
  
"Enjoy the performance?" Serena gave a smile and turned, facing Stanton.  
  
"Yes, it was like a dream come true." She said, looking down at the little silver ring on her finger.  
  
"Your friend didn't enjoy it much." Stanton nodded towards Gabriel. "He is planning his attack soon. I heard it from the underground."  
  
"What should I do?" Serena asked. She was heart broken from coming from complete happiness to slamming scary reality.  
  
Stanton took her hand with the ring on it, he liked the way it looked on her small finger. "Tell him that you are worn out and your not really feeling like staying out any longer. I will track him down and have a little talk with him. I won't tell him yet who I am, but I will give him a nice little warning…. Oh look, here he comes now." Stanton put on his most polite smile and said hello to Gabriel.  
  
"Serena, is everything okay here?" Gabriel asked, glancing from Stanton to her.  
  
"Uh, yeah." Serena said, pulling her hand free form Stanton's. "I am really exhausted, do you mind walking me home?"  
  
"Not at all." And they walked away.  
  
'Well, this was an odd day…' Serena thought as a smile crept across her face.  
  
'And the day isn't even over.' Stanton's voice echoed in her mind. She couldn't help the laugh that escaped from her.  
  
"What?" Asked Gabriel, looking curious.  
  
"I'll tell you later." Serena replied as she entered her house and closed the door. 


	9. By Morning (*short)

For Meph, the best sister I could ask for.

Serena walked upstairs and couldn't believe her luck. As she swam in her bliss, across town, Stanton was meeting with the enemy. 

Gabriel was walking along the beach when he felt as if he was being watched from behind. "If you don't wish do die a most horrible death, you will show yourself and stop playing games." Gabriel turned and came face to face with Stanton. 

"But playing games is so much fun." Stanton replied in a mocking voice. He looked Gabriel up and down as he circled around him. 

"Games are never fun when you loose." Gabriel returned, obviously angry. "Why are you following me? First you find me and my girlfriend walking on the road and now you are following me on the beach,"

"That was no coincidence that your car broke down was it?" Gabriel stopped in front of Gabriel again, challenging him.

"Who are you? I must know your name before I kill you." Gabriel said with a light bounce in his voice, he was enjoying this. He hadn't had a good kill in years, this will be fun.

"You? What, kill me? Impossible." Stanton said as if pleased, even though he hated the immortal part of himself. 

"Nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it." Gabriel shot back with his cool smile. 

"And what do you have in your mind? What are you up to? I have been hearing rumors you are going to try to convert the Goddess Serena, can't be done. It was tried before." Stanton could sense the bewilderment rising in Gabriel.

"You're a Follower, aren't you?" Gabriel said, very pleased. 'They are very fun to break' he thought as a grin emerged on his face.

"In a way. Where you aware that the Dark Prince claimed Serena, or did you just happen forget that he is the leader?" Stanton said coolly. 

"Ajax is the rightful Dark Prince! Those damn Followers don't even convert right anymore!" Gabriel was straining to gain control over his voice.

Behind them, the sun was setting into the night. Streaks of orange and pink shot from the sun as it descended into the blue abyss. 

Gabriel broke his star with Stanton and looked over the water. "By morning she will be mine, and Ajax will take the throne from that foolish Stanton." He stalked away. 


	10. Midnight Battle

Serena walked into towards her room unable to shake the grin off her face. 'For having a rather bad week, today went rather well' she thought. Serena entered her room and changed out of her jeans and shirt and put on her favorite sweat pants and Colorado State University shirt that was her father's. 'Ice cream' she thought, 'ice cream would make this day perfect.'

She waltzed her way down the stairs, humming to herself. 'Chocolate marshmallow, here I come!' Serena turned and faced the freezer, a small yellow post-it note was on the door. 

"Took Jimena out, be back later. Need more chocolate marshmallow. Later. Collin."

"That poop! He ate all my marshmallow!" She sighed, "regular chocolate will just have to do." She took out the carton and placed it on the table. As she walked over to the cupboards, she thought she heard a thud coming from her room. 

Serena automatically stiffened. She strained her hearing, but when no more sounds reached her, she sent out her mind. A small response echoed back to her. Someone was in her room. 

She slowly made her way out of the kitchen, inching her way forward. She slowly crept up the stairs. Numb with fear, Serena turned then into her room. "Who are you? I know someone is here." She said it rather strong, surprising herself. 

A small quiver sound came from the corner of her room, by her nightstand. Bobby. He was huddled in the small corner, rocking back and forth. "Bobby, what the hell are you doing here!" Serena picked up her baseball bat by her door.

Bobby did not respond to her question. Then, after several minutes of silence, Bobby started to mumble. "Can't fight him, not anymore. I can't fight him anymore, can't allow it to win. Must give in, cannot give in. Must fight, must give message. Must not give in, must obey master."

Serena slowly put down her bat and took two steps forward. "Bobby," she said in her soft voice, "Bobby, you aren't making any sense. Why are you here? It's okay, I won't hurt you, see?" She put the bat down and knelt on her knees to face him eye-to-eye. 

"Wants to face Goddess, Goddess Serena. 'Bring her to me' he say to me. No! Won't allow him to win. Must give message! 'Bring her to me!' he say. Must go, Goddess Serena." He stopped rocking and looked at Serena in the eyes. "Must go and fight, Goddess Serena. He is waiting." 

"Who is waiting?" Serena asked, knowing the answer. 

"Zirus. He is waiting for you." Bobby said, his voice quivered again. 

"How long do I have to get ready?" Serena asked, standing up.

"Midnight, meet him at midnight. Alone, Goddess Serena must be alone. 

Serena looked over at her clocks along her dresser, 9:30 p.m.

"I will return at eleven to take you to him." Bobby said rising. "Tell no one." With out warning, he jumped off the balcony and ran off into the setting dark. 

For all battles against the Atrox, the Goddesses had to look their part. Serena was fully prepared to look her best for tonight's battle, for she knew it might be her last. She took a bath and tried to clear her mind. Of course, she listened to VAST while doing so. 

She decided to wear the fire outfit she wore on her first date with Gabriel. She painted her eyes with red body paint into the shaped of flames coming off her eyelashes. At the tips of the flames, she placed body jewels. Finally, she rolled glitter on her face and arms. She was finished, and she did look the part of a Goddess going into battle. For her shoes, though, she wore tennis shoes. She couldn't run in her matching fire boots. 

She turned off her lights and made her way downstairs. The grandfather clock in the living room started to chime eleven o'clock. Grabbing her bag and making her way to the door, Serena thought, 'goodbye world, for I would rather die than be made evil.' She opened her front door and took a deep breath. 'This is it. Here we go." She stepped out into the dark. "Bobby, I am ready" she called out. 

He appeared at her side and said nothing as he started to lead her down the street. He seemed different than earlier. When she saw him in her room, he seemed scared and timid. He acted like he didn't want Serena to go and fight Zirus. And now that she was following him, he seemed sure of himself again. She thought that maybe Zirus had him under a spell, seeing that she had known Bobby since first grade, he always seemed like a nice boy. In fact, Bobby always went out of his way to be nice to people. Why would he act this way now under his own power; it must be a spell. 

"Where are we going?" Serena broke the silence. Bobby walked in strides in front of her. She had to half run to keep up with the tall Bobby. 

"Old factory, ten miles into the desert." He replied in a hard voice. 

"Bobby, why are you doing this?" Serena begged. "I always thought you were such a nice person. What is making you do this?"

Bobby stopped and put his hand to his forehead. "I-I I don't know." He stuttered. Serena walked up next to him. She stared into his eyes. "NO! Serena, run! Get away from here! Do you know what he is going to do to you? You must get out of town, run. I tried to fight him, but I couldn't. I was not strong enough against his power." Bobby pleaded with Serena, but she didn't move. 

"He is coming, Goddess." Bobby continued, looking off at the empty streets. "Don't you feel him coming? He has sensed me break free. You must run." Bobby started to pull her away.

"No. Bobby, who are you? How do you know about me and Gabriel?" Serena planted her feet firmly into the ground and demanded Bobby for an answer.

"I am like you in several ways, Goddess. We look normal, but indeed, there is more hidden features to us than the world will ever know." Bobby changed just then, the light of humanity in his eyes flickered away and blackness was left. 

"Your ride is here, Goddess." Bobby held her firm now, not allowing Serena to run. A black Mustang roared up next to them. Bobby opened the back seat and forced Serena in with him. 

The ride seemed to be hours long. Finally, the black car pulled into a deserted lot next to an old, run down factory. The driver jumped out of the car and ran inside, Bobby and Serena were left in the car. 

"What are we waiting for?" Serena asked, trying to pull free from Bobby's strong grip. 

"It's not yet midnight." Bobby said simply. Then, at five till twelve, Bobby pulled Serena out of the car and headed towards the doors of the factory. 

"Welcome, Goddess." Gabriel was standing in the middle of the factory. A white glowing fire was next to him. "I believe I don't need to explain what this is." He pointed at the fire.

"No, you don't." Serena replied. She dared him strongly by looking into his eyes. Horror then followed. 

Gabriel's handsome features changed into a ghastly mess of flesh and ooze. His perfect, melting smile turned into a yellow gaping grin. The Hunter now stood before her.

"Now you see me how I really am." Zirus said with an amused sort of tone.

"No, I always knew you were rotten underneath." Serena rebutted.

"Aw, but you didn't always think that. It's not nice to lie, Serena. I believe there was a time you went against that Follower's word not to trust me. You did so anyway, didn't you Serena?" Zirus was obviously having fun.

"And what Follower would you be referring to? I have destroyed so many since I met you." Serena was trying to sound tough, not very successfully. 

"A rather rude one, he didn't tell me his name. He was the driver who picked us up when we were walking along the streets. I was going to take you there, you know. But He showed up and sadly ruined my chance." 

"Gee, what a shame." Serena cocked her head sideways. 

Zirus gave what was supposed to be a laugh. "So, what would it be? Do you want to do this the easy way, or the hard way?" 

"You sound a lot like a cop movie." Serena gave a sly smile. She was about to respond again, but she was cut off by another voice.

"What about the destroying the Hunter and leaving merrily way? Have you forgotten that?" 

Zirus, Serena and Bobby looked up at the loft above their heads. "Ah, Its you again. Defending the 'dark prince' wishes again?" Zirus gave a chuckle. "You are so rude. If you must insist on getting involved, you could at least be on time." 

"But you forget, I like making grand entrances." Stanton stood on the railing on the loft, gave a smile, then jumped. He landed stealthily on two feet next to Serena. He threw her a smile and said to the crowd, "Am I too late for the festivities?" 

"Not at all, just in time" Zirus said. The area surrounding him grew statically as he gathered power. 

Stanton stood protectively in front of Serena. "No," she said. "It's my battle as well." She stepped out from behind him. Now they stood together, a strong force to break. 

A green lightening bolt flew from Zirus's great opened arms. The joined hands of Serena and Stanton easily defended the attack. 

"It seems I need the whole of my power" Zirus stretched his right arm out at Bobby. "I am no longer in need of your services. RIDIENS!" Green light poured from Bobby's eyes, flowing into the open palm of Zirus. 

Serena and Stanton, in the meantime, built up their powers. "Now!" Stanton yelled. Blue lightening emerged from their hands and struck Zirus hard. He fell backwards into an old machine.

"I want you to get out of here, Serena!" Stanton yelled over the rumblings that seemed to surround them. 

"I will not leave you!" Serena yelled back. She held up her hand with the ring on it. "I will not leave you." She repeated. "Why is earth rumbling?" Serena asked.

"The Atrox is displeased, it will take the whole building." Zirus said amusingly, standing up. "The Atrox will get you anyway. Either by me or by itself, it will have you." Just then, Zirus shot all the force he has ever possessed at Serena.

"NO!" Stanton shouted and dived in front of Serena. He took the impact on the chest. He fell to the floor and remained motionless.

Serena stared at her love lying on the floor. "Now," she said, "Now I am pissed." She sent her own red force at Zirus. He reared back from the shear force of her. He now lay on the floor as well. She knelt down next to Stanton and pulled his head on her lap. All was still. The rumbling had quieted. No one else existed. She held him with one hand and fiddled with his blond hair with the other. "My Protector."

Her focus was broken by a chanting voice from the other end of the room. Serena looked up and saw Bobby over the ugly Hunter. 

"What are you doing?" She managed to get out. 

When Bobby finished his chanting, he tuned and faced her. His eyes were of a pure blue, like the sea after a storm. Light seemed to be radiating from him. "He is gone for good now, rest assured." He said, but his voice had changed. His voice flowed and chimed like a song. 

"Who are you?" Serena begged again.

"My real name is Babylon. I am an Angelic. But I fear that is all I can say right now, we are pressed for time. The factory is crumbling. We must make haste." Bobby walked to her. He carefully picked up Stanton and led the way out. 

Placing Stanton in the back seat of the black Mustang, Bobby said to Serena, "Do you want to sit in the back with him, or in the front?" 

"In the back, if that is alright." Serena was already seated and placing Stanton's head back on her lap. "He needs me."

"Alright, back to your house?" Bobby asked as he pulled out of the lot.

"Yes, back to my house." Serena said, not really paying attention to Bobby. "My Protector." She held Stanton close, "My Protector always." 


	11. Kitchen Meeting

The car ride to Serena's house was silent. Serena, slowly caressing Stanton's handsome face, was placing thought and wishes into his sleeping mind. She looked down at her dirty, torn outfit and realized that her moon amulet was only glowing when Zirus was present, why didn't it glow when Stanton was around? 

"Okay, here we are. Looks like someone's home. Do I need to put a sleeping spell on anyone?" Babylon asked. He no longer looked like Bobby. His aura changed. He glowed of a white light and eyes shone of a pure crystal blue. 

Serena looked out into the black driveway ahead of her. "No," she began, "its just Colin. He'll probably be snoring in his room with his headphones on." She then returned her eyes to Stanton. 

Babylon turned off the car and made his way to the back seat door. He opened it and said quietly to Serena, "Go unlock the door and make sure the coast is clear, I will bring Stanton in behind you." Serena nodded and carefully placed Stanton's head down. She slid off the seat and made her way to the door. With very little effort, Babylon lifted Stanton out of the car and shut the door with a free hand.

He entered the still house with a weary eye. "Serena," he whispered, "Serena, where are you?" He cautiously closed the front door behind him. 

Serena walked out of the kitchen with a damp washcloth. She gestured for him to follow her. Slowly, they made there way upstairs. Serena stopped in front of Colin's open door. She pointed to her room as she crept into Colin's pigpen known as a bedroom. Checking that Colin was truly asleep, Serena left his room and closed his door behind her. 

She entered her own room and found Stanton lying on her bed with Babylon standing on the balcony. Serena pulled up a chair next her bed and took Stanton's hand. "How bad is it?" She asked Babylon.

"That blast was strong enough to destroy an Immortal. Being the Dark Prince is what saved him." Babylon's voice sounded indifferent, but Serena got the feeling that he was actually thankful. Two enemies coming together to overcome a greater evil; and to protect her. He glided, over to the bed and lifted up Stanton's shirt. 

Serena couldn't help the yip that came from her. A bloody, burning red scorch mark was left on Stanton's abdomen. "Help me get this off of him." Serena begged getting to her feet. 

Babylon ripped the black shirt off Stanton and threw it to the ground. "I know of a place a little ways away that sell some herbs that would help heal that. Will you be fine alone for awhile?"

"Yes. Go quickly." Serena said almost as quietly as a whisper. 

Babylon returned about three o'clock and placed a washcloth soaked in an herbal substance on the wound. The night passed ever so slowly for Serena. She never left Stanton's side. Then, finally, at seven o'clock, he stirred.

Stanton asked to be taken to where he lives to recover. He insisted that he would be fine recovering by himself. It took several lengthy arguments with Serena, but Stanton finally got his wish. He lay sprawled across the back seat of Babylon's black car, doing his best to assure Serena that he will be fine. She didn't want to let him go. 

Serena did go to school that Monday, but she wasn't fully there. She was very worried about Stanton. Noticing Serena's spacing, Jimena finally spoke up on their way to Jimena's car.

"Hey, is something wrong? You seem really distant today?" Jimena asked.

"I'll explain when we get in the car." Serena said simply. 

Bobby's voice came unexpectedly from behind, "What, you didn't tell them yet?" 

Jimena whirled around and faced Bobby face to face. Catty and Vanessa ran up from the soccer field followed quickly by Tianna. They stared at him with loathing hatred and disbelief. 

He just gave a charming smile and turned to Serena, "You better explain to them that I am not a baddie anymore." 

"What? C'mon everyone, we are going to straighten this whole thing out now!" Jimena turned around and quietly led the way back to her car.

At Serena's disserted house, they all sat in the kitchen and listened to the whole story according to Serena. When she finished, everyone, except for herself and Bobby, were astonished. 

After a brief moment of silence, Jimena looked up at Serena, "I am so sorry. I should have told you." 

"Should have told me what?" Serena asked, looking Jimena in the eyes. 

"I had a vision a week ago, I didn't know what it was then, but now it makes sense. It was some scary looking' ugly guy shooting a green beam out of his hands, but that's all I saw. I thought that maybe another vision would come to me and give me more clues, it never did. I'm sorry." She ended and looked down at her hands. 

"It's not your fault, you don't need to be sorry. I should have told you guys what was going on. I was just worried what you would think." Serena said, getting up to get a glass of water. 

"So, Bobby's real name is Babylon and he is an Angelic?" Catty asked from her leaning position at the door. 

"Yea, I wasn't in control that night and the whole week. I apologize for not being able to fight and do my job." Bobby said then, changing into the more appealing form of Babylon. 

"You tried, we understand. Sometimes you are just caught off your guard and stuff happens." Catty was babbling and staring (practically drooling) at Babylon. 

Jimena interrupted the nonsense coming from Catty. "So, what is your story Angelic Babylon?" 

"Well, I was in Italy eighteen years ago. I was protecting the mortals from a Hunter that had been causing an immense amount of trouble by the name of Ajax. He had many supporters, mostly from the ones he had changed. My job was to shadow him, find out this plan he had been talking about, then destroy him and all evidence of the plan. Three years into the mission, he disappeared. I finally tracked as far as England. From there, I had no idea. Then, after several months of vain searches, I received a tip from an old friend. Ajax, after a harsh battle with a Goddess, was extremely weak. No one could find him. But, his plan was found out. His greatest supporter was to find the next generation of Goddesses and change the One to the Atrox under Ajax's name, gaining him the crown as Dark Prince. 

I was told that the next generation lived in LA and I quickly traveled there. I made myself at home, changing my appearance to fit the growing forms of my peers at school. All awhile, I was searching for the One, and trying to protect her. Sadly, I failed." He stopped then, the sincerity in his voice was detectable, but his pride was still held. Even when he was ashamed, he was honorable. 

"You didn't fail, his plan did not come true. Zirus was defeated and Ajax is, well, what happened to Ajax?" Vanessa asked.

"Ajax is still weak and undercover, I must continue to search for him. My mission is still not over." Babylon stated.

No one spoke for five minutes. Every person in the room kept their thoughts to themselves, finally, the front door opened and broke their silence.

"Cool, a party. Hey Jimena, what's up?" Colin inquired, entering the kitchen and made his way for the fridge. 

"No party and you better not be thinking of eating my chocolate marshmallow. I know what you're up to." Serena joked. 

"Then what is going on? And who is this guy and what kind of stuff is he on? Is he glowing?" Colin was confused and unable to hide it.

Babylon changed into Bobby again, much to the disliking of Tianna and Catty. "He is not on anything and we were just talking, but we are done now. Come on, Colin, I will take you out for ice cream." 

Colin snapped his vision to Jimena and gladly accepted her offer. Jimena gave a smile and a hug to Serena and waved goodbye to the others. "Call you later. She whispered to Serena and left with the eager Colin.

"Do they have chocolate marshmallow there?" They heard Colin ask.

"Yes they do, now shut up or you are paying." Jimena replied.

When they were out of earshot, Vanessa reminded everyone they had a soccer game to get to. "We better be going, or we will be late. Cya tomorrow?" Vanessa asked, giving Serena a big hug.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow. Good luck and kick ass." Serena gave a smile. The last three left, leaving only Serena and Babylon. 

"You took Stanton home, right?" Serena asked Babylon after awhile. 

"Yes, I did." He replied shortly.

"Give me his address, I need to see him." She said and she her bag and stared to leave.

"I don't think that is the best idea." Babylon said, following her towards the door. 

"Why not? He is only hurt cause he saved me. I need to talk to him." Serena was not going to take no for an answer.

"It's not safe, I know Stanton wouldn't hurt you, but what if there were other Followers there?" Babylon got in her way, much to her disliking.

Serena pointed her finger at him accusingly, "I don't care! I will make sure there aren't any. Give me the address."

"I will drive you there myself, then you can call a cab home." He gave up and left in front of her, digging in his pocket for his keys.


	12. Spying?

Several minutes later, Babylon's car pulled into an old Victorian house on the outskirts of the city. "Here you are. I scanned it and there are no Followers in there, but be careful anyway. Do you have your cell?" Babylon asked, putting the car into park. 

"Yeah, I got it. Thanks for the ride, see you tomorrow." Serena opened the car door and slid out. She was a little nervous, not because she was going in to see Stanton, but because the house looked like the Bates Motel. 

She walked up to the door and found it was unlocked. After she stepped inside, she heard the roar of Babylon's car pulling away. She quietly shut the door and made her way forward. 

The house was as ancient inside as it looked outside. Old furniture was situated throughout the house along with some modern pieces. Serena looked from side to side examining rooms as they came to her along the hallway. She reached the end of the long hallway to find a grand staircase. 

'This house is so large, how will I find where he is?' She thought helplessly. She leaned against the guardrail and thought of how many rooms a place like this might have. Then, gradually, a sound tickled at her ears; a chord of a guitar. It was faint and soft at first, but then it grew to loud and strong. Serena straightened herself and leaned her head towards the flowing music. It was coming from upstairs. 

Soundlessly, Serena crept up the long staircase, following the flow of the guitar. When she reached the top, she turned right and kept on. The music was getting louder and clearer. Finally, the guitar was at full volume, Serena was standing in front of the main bed chamber. The door was slightly ajar, so Serena pressed on it lightly and further opened it for a better look. 

Stanton was sitting on his bed, a giant four poster full with curtains and large comforter. His shirt was off and Serena observed his wound was almost completely healed. 'Dark Princes must heal quick' she thought to herself with a sigh of relief. Stanton was playing his acoustic guitar to a song she didn't know. 'There is nothing sexier than a guy who can play the guitar.' She thought to herself with a smile.

"Why don't you come in and sit down, don't think I didn't sense you as soon as you came in my front door." She was caught, but Stanton kept his concentration upon his guitar. 

Serena pushed the door open completely and walked in. She sat upon the massive bed next to Stanton. He finished his song and turned his head and looked at Serena. He gave her a menacing smile. "Spying on me, huh?" He asked. 

"No! I was just checking up on you. There is a difference you know." She replied back with a smile. "I liked your song, what was it?"

"I met this guy awhile back. He has a band named Mellowdrone. They aren't really known, but I liked their stuff. Well, we became fast friends and now he sends me his music to test out and give my input and advise on. That was his song Fashionably Uninvited. Here is my favorite though, it reminds me of you." He stuck the guitar again and fell into a song. 

"I'll be the boy, and you'd be my girlie. I'll write us a love song, tell us a story. And you'll show it off to all of your friends. They will act jealous or at least they'll pretend. But I am sorry to say, I'm not that clever. I can't write words that will last you forever…" Stanton's song was very beautiful and Serena wished it could last forever. The song was about loving the person you do despite of all the obstacles in your way. 

"Well, what do you think?" Stanton asked when he had finished.

"Very lovely, especially because you sang it to me." Serena smiled. She quickly changed the topic, "How are you healing?" 

"Good, but it's still--" He cut himself off and held up his hand to silence Serena from talking. "Followers are coming. Hide." Stanton looked serious for suck a stupid request.

"No! I will not. You saved me, I have the right to see you!" She stood up and faced him. 

"They do not know I saved you, they think I was hurt fighting a traitor to the Atrox. Here, go in here. I will send them away as fast as I can." Stanton pushed Serena into an empty closet and shut the door. "Now, be quiet or I will have to spank you." Stanton said with a tiny laugh.

"Don't start" Serena replied with a laugh of her own. 


	13. 'Wanna Get Out Of Here?'

***I can develop this story into a longer one (And I mean long), but I will only do it if the readers want me to. So, if you want me to go on, just write me a little review saying so; if I get seven, I will continue. 

Some low mumbles were heard from the grand room outside of the small closet concealing Serena. Serena looked down and saw the strong, brilliant light of her moon amulet; Followers are near. Before she could really get nervous, the voices stopped and she heard a door slam. Her moon amulet slowly lost its bright light and turned into a dull glow, slowly returning normal. Then, without warning, the closet door swung open quickly and a dark figure entered.

Stanton shut the door behind him and faced Serena. Serena parted her lips to ask what was wrong, but Stanton stopped her, putting his finger to her lips. "Shh, don't speak. They are still out there. Its safer in here." He had that look on his face, what a menace. 

Stanton held both Serena's hands in his and looked into her eyes. "Stanton, quite playing around! Are they gone?" Serena asked with a smile she couldn't help but hide.

"No," he whispered back, "they are still out there, it is safer in here." 

"I highly doubt that," Serena rebutted and pulled her right hand from Stanton's. She reached for the handle, but Stanton stood in her way. 

Getting a little angry, Serena began to argue with Stanton, but was cut off by his lips. Everything was left behind. Serena only knew that one other person existed in this world, and that was Stanton. She only knew that she was with him, nothing else mattered. She was no longer kissing an enemy in an old dusty closet; but she was kissing her protector. She was soaring above the clouds on the break of dawn. Bright lights everywhere, like the color of her mood amulet. 

Peace flowed through her, as if it was radiating from Stanton. Heat seemed to move from him to her; she was basking in his warmth and love. Without warning and without cause, Stanton pulled away. 

"Wanna get out of here?" He asked with his malice grin.

"Yes." Serena replied. And off they went. 


	14. Imposter

Sorry it took so long. Protector, part II Chapter fourteen: Imposter

Serena stood in the vast ocean letting the cool water lap around her. The sun was setting and all around her were colors that no artist could conjure. This was the only place where she can feel relaxed when times were rough, but even this tranquility could not sooth her. Her anger was pulsing through her before she entered the water, but now that she has, the anger was filled with sadness and disbelief. 

'How could he do that?' She questioned herself as she watches the gulls fly over and about the beach. 'I never thought he could be so cruel to me--to anyone.' Then, although she did her best to stop it, the memories of what happened that afternoon caught up with her. 

After driving around awhile in Stanton's car, Serena began to notice a change in him. There was no hint of light in his eyes that there was before. Stanton was also more aggressive in his driving; he was swerving in and out of traffic. When Serena suggested he should calm down, he yelled at her and then laughed when she was offended. 

He parked by a local park that was crowed with some type of festival. They got out of the car and were walking together when Serena noticed that Stanton was eyeing the crowd with great attentiveness. 

"Are you looking for someone?" Serena asked.

"Not anyone in particular, just people who have potential to be a good follower. Business has been so slow lately." Stanton responded with indifference.

"Business? You never referred to it like that before." She replied with disgust and suspicion.

"Yeah, well, things change little goddess and you need to get used to it." Stanton didn't look at her when he talked, he just continued to survey the crowd. Serena stared at Stanton in full disgust, but a clown interrupted her. "Hey there, kids! Want a new beautiful hat!" The clown held up a balloon hat made into the shape of a sailor's hat.

Stanton grabbed the clown by the ruffles on his color and held the clown two feet above the ground. "How dare you bother the Prince of Darkness! Be gone you vial bag of human organs. Nay, your death will bring me pride…" And to everyone's surprise and horror, Stanton carried the fearful clown to the pointed fence and brought him down upon it, impaling the clown. Stanton then stalked off in the direction of his car. Serena, recovering from the shock of what just happened, ran to the fence. Help arrived soon and after Serena confirmed what the clown muttered from his dying mouth, she went after Stanton. 

She found him leaning against his car eating an ice cream cone. "What took you so long? I've been waiting. Did you honestly think I would leave without my goddess?" He asked in a cruel, half-mocking voice. 

"How could you do that? How can you murder someone as innocent as that man?" Serena said in a hurt voice. 

"That man was probably not innocent and he wasn't a man, he was a clown." Stanton was obviously amused by the reaction he had gotten from Serena. 

"Who are you?" Serena asked as she wheeled around and started walking towards the boardwalk. 

"What's the matter, Goddess?" Stanton shouted after her from his car. "Your perfect little world torn from you? Grow up goddess, the world isn't what it seems sometimes." 

Serena stopped walking a half block from the car. What he had just said really hurt her. She closed her eyes and painfully took another step. In her mind, his voice echoed: "be seeing you."

Tears began to fill her eyes as Serena watched the sun sink behind the never-ending ocean. She turned around to walk back to the shore and notice that the beach was deserted. As she waded back to land, she noticed a rather large bon fire up on the hill. 

After she put on some dry cloths, Colin was surfing and his car was right on the beach and she always kept some extra cloths in there, she made her way up the hill. When she got there, her heart leapt. Stanton and a crowd of other Followers were converting people to the Atrox. 

Stanton, when he noticed Serena, started stalking over to her. She was struck dumb, two betrayals in one day was too much. Instinct over took her and she ran. But, like the last time she tried to run from Stanton on a darkening day, he caught up to her and grabbed her. He was not harsh or hurtful to her, but more like a gentle lover taking her hand. She spun around to face him. She had made a pretty good distance from the fire, she must have caught Stanton off guard. 

"Look," he said in a low voice, "I know you don't like it, but it's my duty." Serena parted her lips for a rebuttal, but he kept going. "And your probably angry with me for leaving you in my closet this morning, I couldn't help it. They needed me to come with them because there was some trouble, if I would have said no, they might have suspected us." Stanton finished and then he noticed the confused look on Serena's face. "What?" He asked.

"But you did, Stanton." Serena began to cry and fret about. "You did."

Stanton held her tight on the shoulder and tried to understand, "I did what, Serena, I did what?"

"You came back and then you took me out—the park and the clown—" Serena was really trembling now and she would have fallen if Stanton was not holding her up. 

"Wow! Calm down, shh." Stanton looked concerned and confused. He shifted Serena in his hands, then slowly sat her down on a rock. He kneeled down in front of her. He did his best to sooth her, but its not in his nature to be so kind. When realizing this, he quietly waited for her to regain herself.

Serena was breathing heavily as she tried to piece together the events of the day. Then she was ready. "You came back into the closet and you were acting a little strange, but I dismissed it when you kissed me. Then you asked me if I wanted to get out of there and I said yes. You took me to a festival at the park, you weren't acting like yourself, and I knew that. When I asked you about it, you yelled at me and then you—you killed a clown who came to ask us about a hat." Serena looked up from the ground and looked at Stanton. 

He had a very disbelieving face and repeated, "A clown with a hat?" He shook his head. "Serena, let me into you memory."

Serena shook her head no and she cried "no" in a low murmur. 

"I don't really need you permission, you know, I am more powerful than you are." She finally consented to his wish. 

After a few moments, his gaze returned to the present and he shook his head in wonder. "It wasn't me." He said as he got up. He paced back and forth in front of Serena.

"I know that now." She replied. "The light I saw in my kiss, it was not a fantasy, but the colors of my moon amulet shining." She got up now too and paced with Stanton. "He also called me Goddess, and you got out of that habit awhile ago." She started to sound more like herself, with a little bit of anger in her voice. She wanted revenge to whoever played this awful scheme. 


	15. A Dance

My sister said the last chapter sucks, sorry if it does. Maybe this one will be an improvement.  
  
In the days that followed, Serena kept her eyes open for anything out of the ordinary. Everything seemed to be back to normal. After several conversations with her friends, she was convinced not to hide in her house anymore. She wanted to live her life, and that meant Planet Bang.  
  
Dressed to kill and ready for some fun, Serena waited for Jimena to pick her and Collin up at their house. "Seriously," Serena began while gelling Collins bleached hair, "why don't you ever pick HER up instead of the other way around?"  
  
He sighed. "Two factors really" Serena made an encouraging noise, "One reason is because she offers to do it all the time and two is that it saves me gas money." He gave his 'just joking' laugh and yelled out loud "just joking, just joking!" when Serena went to smack him.  
  
Serena got up and went to the sink to rid her hands of the left over gel that caked her hands, and then that feeling came to her. Someone was watching her! She could feel the hairs on the back of her pinned-up hair stand on their ends. She did exactly what Maggie had instructed her and searched the area for a mind. She only got the stupid ramblings of Colin about how great Jimena would look on a surfboard. The feeling passed and Serena walked into the den.  
  
"Hey!" Colin yelled, "Jimena and the gang are here, let's go."  
  
************************  
  
The smooth and beating music pulsed through the Goddesses as they danced on the floor. Michael, Colin and 'Bobby' watched from the wall, all looking with desire at the beautiful ladies dancing in front of them. When the song was over, Colin went to Jimena and danced with her, Michael danced with Vanessa (who seemed to have her molecules quite in line) and 'Bobby', in true player form, danced with both Catty and Tianna.  
  
Serena was quite content to dance by herself. She knew many of the guys there wanted her, but they thought she would just reject them, they were probably right. While Serena was swaying her hips and arms, two hands slipped around her waist and she felts someone's face by the back of her head, someone was dancing with her but her mind didn't pick any thought up.  
  
A strange voice whispered in her mind, "Told you I'd be seeing you"  
  
"You bastard!" Serena gritted her teeth, "who are you?'' She demanded.  
  
"Well, if I told you that, it would spoil my fun and we don't want that do we?" He spoke to her out loud now; his voice was charming and gentle but had a hidden malice that Serena was slightly afraid of.  
  
"What do you want from me?" She asked, charging herself incase she felt she needed to kick his ass.  
  
"Oh, nothing much," he responded in a sly voice that made Serena think that he was 'putting the moves' on her. His hands were holding her tight as they danced together. "So, I guess you found out my little trick the other day."  
  
"You know, you give yourself too much credit." She rebutted, "It wasn't all that difficult to deduce."  
  
"Really?" He responded in a mocking sad voice, "I thought I did well playing that wanna-be dark prince. Oh, well, you know what they say," and after a short pause he continued. His voice became low and soft as he whispered into her hear, "practice makes perfect."  
  
Then the hands slipped away as quickly as they appeared. Serena turned and found no sign of anyone else being there but herself. She immediately went of to Catty, who was taking a break from dancing with Babylon.  
  
"Hey," Catty said as Serena approached her. "Isn't he great?" Catty pointed to Babylon dancing with Tianna. "But she doesn't like to share." Catty had a sly grin creeping over her face.  
  
"Yeah, he's great" Serena said quickly, "Catty, did you see anyone dancing with me?"  
  
Catty had a dazed, confused look on her face. "Hun," she began, "last time I looked, you were dancing with yourself. Did you think you had a partner?"  
  
"Yes, I did. He is that guy who acted like Stanton the other day." She said, wishing that Catty saw what he looked like.  
  
"Oh, the Stanton Imposter. No, I didn't get a look at him…." She got a glaze in her eyes and a grin appeared on her face again. "But, I could find out." Catty pointed to her watch and gave a laugh.  
  
"Do you mind?" Serena asked, then she clicked her tongue piercing against her teeth. "Please Catty?"  
  
Catty got up off of her stood and grabbed Serena's hand and led her to the ladies' room. "Like I ever mind!" She yelled behind her to Serena.  
  
Catty shut and locked the Ladies' Room behind her and gave a giggle of excitement. "Thank you so much, Catty." Serena was in astonishment in Cat's enthusiasm and couldn't help the grateful smile that crossed her face.  
  
"Hey, it's cool. Just don't tell Vanessa, she'd get so angry with me. Ready?" Catty said and didn't wait for an answer, for she took Serena's hand and closed her eyes.  
  
The atmosphere around Serena changed as she felt sticky and damp air wrap itself around her. Then she was falling, falling into nothingness. She didn't know how Catty could stand to do this; the feeling was so horrible. She began to understand why Vanessa hated it so much. Serena then began to loose herself. She was falling into unconsciousness when, finally, they struck ground and found themselves outside Planet Bang.  
  
"Practice your landings, Cat." Serena jested with a smile. "When are we?" She asked. She stood up and swatted the grass and dirt from her metallic red skirt. She looked around her and noticed that they landed in the back of Planet Bang, which was closed of by a one-way gate to prevent people from getting in when they shouldn't.  
  
"We are fifteen-minutes ago." Catty answered as she looked at her watch. "Wow," she began, "I've never been back here before."  
  
"They closed it off because too many people got in through the fire exits. You can exit the gates, but you cannot enter them unless you have the key." Serena explained all this as she surveyed the dark alley around her. "We can climb the ladder there," she pointed to an old feeble ladder that crawled to the roof, "and enter through the skylights onto the balcony."  
  
Planet Bang was currently under construction. Because of its growing popularity, it was expanding. A balcony that extends a fourth of the floor was being built on three side of the building; excluding the far wall where the stage was for live performers. The balcony was not yet open to the public.  
  
Catty hesitated a little about climbing that ladder, but consented to follow in after Serena. The entered the still unfinished balcony as planned and crept along the shadows toward the middle where Serena was dancing. The pair tried to move along as quietly as possible so that they would not draw attention to themselves when suddenly, cheers and applause broke their movement.  
  
The goddesses below just finished their dance and were dispersing about around the room. They saw Catty and Tianna head over to the right with Babylon, Jimena went to the left with Colin, and Vanessa moved forward to meet with Michael. Serena was left in the middle of the floor. The next song filled the air and a dark figure came up behind the dancing figure of Serena on the floor. He put his hands around her waist and slowly began to dance with her. The body of Serena went rigid and from all the way up the balcony, Catty could tell that Serena was pissed.  
  
Catty whispered to Serena; "Man, I don't know who that guy is," she sighed empathetically, "but I sure as hell won't mind if he danced with me like that.  
  
The one they were searching for was just a few feet away, and Serena gasped at what she saw. Because of the darkness and the distance, she couldn't make him out too well, but what she did see, she liked. He was tall, dark, and from what she could see handsome. He had dark black hair that was cut short and done in the ancient Greek style. He wore black leather pants and tan colored shirt that was unbuttoned. Although his back was facing them, the two girls imagined that his facial features were just as attractive as his body was.  
  
Serena gave a laugh and she wanted to say, "Yes, he is sexy, but who he is and what his game was is still unknown to us." But in fact she was stopped at "who he is" because at that moment, he turned his head in their direction and gave a grin. The two girls gasped and Serena felt Catty's hand grip onto her forearm. He then returned his attention to his partner and whispered something into her ear. He skillfully slipped away from her into the shadows. The dancing Serena turned suddenly looked about, but in vain.  
  
"I think we better go," Catty said. Serena nodded in agreement and they turned to head back to the roof, but someone was standing in their way. Serena held back a scream, but Catty had no such self-control. She opened her mouth, but the person in their way walked up to them in an impossible speed put his hand over her mouth.  
  
"I don't think you two want to draw any attention to yourselves, do you?" Said the voice that just fifteen minutes ago whispered to Serena.  
  
The two took him by surprise when Serena gave him a mighty hard right hook into his jaw. They then side stepped him and ran for the open sky light. When they reached the roof, they ran to the edge and swung around, expecting to see him facing them. But they were mistaken he didn't follow them.  
  
"Let's go, Cat." Serena said and took Catty's hand.  
  
"Gladly," Catty responded. They fell into darkness. 


	16. Raphael

Remarkably, Catty's precision was exact and they landed in the Ladies' Room in Planet Bang. They checked their hair and makeup before the exited out into the main floor. A slow song was ending and the dance floor was a mass of dancing couples, swaying in unison to the music. Catty gave Serena a smile and patted her arm and Serena knew what she meant: she found Babylon and she was going to go to him. Serena nodded in response to Catty and made her way to Jimena and Colin at the other end of the room. 

They said hi to her when she approached. "Hey, where have you been girl?" Jimena asked with a smile, handing her a can of Diet Coke. 

"It's a long story," she answered vaguely as she popped the top off, "I'll tell you later. What did I miss? I hope not any fights." 

Jimena smiled. "Unfortunately, we have not been so blessed to have another show like before. You didn't miss much, just some dances. 'Bobby' has been getting close with Tianna and Catty, I see." Jimena noticed as a fast dance came on and the three were dancing in the center of the floor.

"Yeah," Serena confirmed, "I just hope it doesn't cause any fights between them." 

Vanessa approached them pulling Michael behind her. "Hey, Serena. Is everything okay?" She asked, showing more concern on her face than in the tone of her voice. 

"Yes, well, it's kinda weird, I will tell you later." Serena smiled to show that she wasn't worried so Vanessa should not be either. 

The fast paced song ended and the DJ started to introduce a request. Everyone's attention was turned to the DJ because it was very rare that a request was granted; some money had to be slipped to him for the request to be even thought of. 

"This song is from a couple years back, but it has been requested more then enough to persuade me to play it. It's by a band that originated her in LA, here is VAST with Pretty When You Cry. " DJ Ripper got applause and hoots for his decision. 

"I think this request is for you, Serena" Jimena said and she nudged Serena to the dance floor. 

The main lights dimmed and the colored spotlights and flashers were all that illuminated the dance floor. The bases of the song started and Serena's heart leapt with them. She loved this song…

She was in the middle of the floor before she knew it and she was oblivious to her surroundings except for the beat of the music. She was deciding on when she should join the song and dance when Stanton appeared before her. 

One smooth step brought him face to face with her. His hands went around her waist and she automatically wrapped her arms around his neck, they started dancing when the singing started. 

"This song always reminds me of us." He said softly. He sang with the song, "I didn't want to hurt you baby, I didn't want to hurt you, I didn't want to hurt you but you're pretty when you cry…." The song began to pick up and so did the rhythm of their dance. 

When he first came to her, she wasn't sure if it was Stanton or the Imposter, but after he said this, that twinkle in his eyes flashed and that grin appeared. That glimmer in his eye, that light she saw, that was the little bit of humanity still left in him, and that was why she loved him. 

The song continued as they danced; "And the moon gives me permission when I enter through her eyes. She's loosing her virginity and all her will to compromise. I didn't want to hurt you baby, I didn't want to hurt you, I didn't want to hurt you but you're pretty when you cry." Eastern chanting ensued which made this music so beautiful to Serena. The song continued with Serena and Stanton silent, lost in the music. 

Stanton whispered the last part of the song to Serena, "And if you knew how much I love you, you would run away…"

Serena supplied the echo, "How could you do this to me know?"

Stanton continued with the next line, "But when I treat you bad it always makes you want to stay."

"How could you do this to me know?" She responded on cue. 

"I didn't want to hurt you baby." He whispered with a serious tone, "I didn't want to hurt you, baby." The chanting resumed its background as Stanton sang with the same emotion as the singer, "I didn't want to hurt you, baby! I didn't want to hurt you baby."

Serena looked saddened and spoke her line again, "How could you do this to me know?" 

The song rolled slowly to a stop and the two stayed entwined together. Neither of them noticed that almost every eye was on them. The attention did not last, however, because a new song came on.

This snapped Serena back into reality and she immediately pulled her hands away from Stanton. He gave her a rueful smile in return and took her hand. He kissed it and said, "Thank you for the dance." 

A voice behind Serena suddenly made her skin crawl. "I don't know, I thought it was rather repetitive for you to try to win her over by singing to her again. Tell me, Serena, doesn't it get droll?" The voice was hurtful and malice, it belonged to the Imposter. She noticed Stanton's gloating smile before she turned around to face the speaker. 

Stanton answered him in a proud, mocking voice, "Just jealous 'cause you fail to win her over as I do?" 

"Win me over?" Serena was enraged. "Stanton, we discussed this. You are the Prince of Darkness, we can't be together." She was on the verge of tears. It was pain to be apart from him, it was agony to be near him and not be able to have him. "And YOU!" She pointed her finger at the dark man from before, "Who are you and WHAT do you want from me?" This was it, she had enough. She didn't want to be toyed with anymore, she didn't want to be fooled anymore, she wanted answers. 

"I believe," Stanton took the liberty of answering the question for the man, "that this is Ajax and he wants to seduce you and turn you to the Atrox." 

"Is that true?" She demanded of him

"Aye, it is." He replied. "But I would much rather you call me Raphael." 


	17. A Silent Battle

They stood there in silence for awhile. Serena was in a total state of confusion; she only moved to shield the glowing moon amulet under her blouse. Stanton and Raphael were daring each other to a fight with their eyes. 

Finally, Raphael broke the silence. "Hoping to fulfil the prophecies, Stanton?" He inclined his head just a little so that he may look down upon Stanton. 

As if in response, Serena felt the terrible tremble of evil quake around Stanton. Whatever this prophecy is, Stanton obviously didn't like the mention of it. But instead of releasing his demonic energy, he responded in a controlled, tight voice, "I thought that would be what you are attempting." 

Raphael gave a short, forced laugh and replied in a mocking concerned voice, "Oh, I would never seek to claim the one you already have chosen." And in a fluid motion, he took Serena's arm with a firm but gentle grip and led her off to the side, knowing that Stanton was following. 

Now in the safe in a dark corner from the straining ears and peeping eyes of room, the group continued their talk. Serena was still silent, soaking in the words of the two evil beings on both sides of her. She was still confused. 'What is this prophecy and what does it have to do with me? Who is Raphael? He is obviously evil and not a friend of Stanton's.' 

Just then, Crawling by Linkin Park filled the air around her and screamed with emotion. Serena couldn't help but to relate to the song. Then, the conversation resumed and she hid he look of impatience on her face. 

"You know how things work, you cannot take one who I have claimed for myself." Stanton was enraged and he was holding in his fierce anger as best as he could. He was pushed to his limits and shimmers of his hate and detest for Raphael was pulsating off of him; the strength of which were hitting Serena with a steady stream of pain and chills. 

"The Atrox is angry with you for not doing it yet, your excuses are running low and talk is stirring that you never plan to do it, seeing you dancing with her like that sends a different message than what you tell us." Raphael responded, trying not to wince in pain because of Stanton's tremors. 

Stanton's fury was at a peak, and Serena almost fell to her knees. She started to shake. Her knees gave out, but she did not fall. It was then that she noticed Stanton's hold on her, it had been so gentle and constant that she didn't even realize he was holding her up. 

Stanton continued in his tight and controlled voice, though his eyes shone with fury, "I am the Prince of Night." He exclaimed, "if the Atrox were angry with me, I would know. And I do not nor will I ever have to explain my actions to a low class Hunter such as yourself." At this, he unleashed what must have been only a fraction of his mighty power. The sheer force, however, was enough to knock Serena's feet out from under her. Stanton's hold was the only thing that prevented her from falling. 

The air became staticy and the bittersweet smell of electricity surrounded the three in the small corner. Small sounds of popping sizzled in Serena's ears as the charge grew stronger. Even though Stanton's main force was directed at Raphael, Serena was feeling the horrible effects of his power. If this attack were to last any longer, Serena would faint and be nearly destroyed, but it did not come to that. Stanton's power decreased and the atmosphere around them slowly returned normal.

When Serena found her bearings, she looked across from her at Raphael. He looked weak from defending such an attack, yet somewhat amuse for the reaction he had gotten. 

"That was a mere warning," Stanton started. "Never doubt me or my actions again. Go." He ordered. 

Raphael turned on his heels and stalked quickly away. He slowed at the bar and glanced at a young girl dressed in black and nodded at the door and then walked out. She, in return, got up, pouting, and said goodbye to the crowed of good looking guys around her. They looked saddened by her leaving, and for good cause, Serena thought.

Serena had never noticed this girl before. She had long straight black hair that shimmered down to her waist. Her face, pale in complexion except for the redness in her lips, was utterly perfect. And even from the distance that separated Serena from this stranger, Serena noticed the bright green jeweled eyes beset on the stranger's brow. But now the girl turned and her black dress flipped about her knees as she marched out of Planet Bang behind Raphael. 

As Serena was thinking about what this girl had to do with Raphael, she felt Stanton slowly loosen his grip on her. He let go with her with one hand and inspected her face with the other. "You okay?" He asked in a surprisingly cool voice considering what just happened. 

She turned her gaze upon him now, "Yes," she began, "a little confused and tired, but I am fine. Who is he?" She asked. 

He dropped the hand that was holding her face and returned it to her shoulder. "He is the Hunter who our 'good friend' Zirus worked for." Stanton was a little angry still, and it showed in his voice. But he truly tried to block it for Serena's sake; she had been through enough for today. 

He started to release her, but she faltered a little and he regained his grip on her. He stooped down to peer into her eyes and said, "sorry if I had scared you, but I needed to give him a message." 

"I wasn't scared" She replied. She was not sure if she said it to him or if she spoke it to his mind, but he looked intrigued as if he had gotten the message. She told him the words that she loved from her favorite book, Archangel, "For the world slows and the stars falter, and all that remains is you…"

He stood up straight in response and had a stern look upon his face. "Serena," he whispered across her mind, "I--" but he was cut off. 

She suddenly wrenched herself free from his grasp and pushed his hands away when he reached for her again. "No." She protested. "Stanton, you are the Prince of Night, Prince of Darkness. Everything I stand against." She didn't know how to explain herself properly, so she again quoted her favorite book. " We are like noon and midnight, chasing each other from one side of the world to the next. Let it go--let the world spin on between us."

"You don't honestly want that." He tried to persuade her, but she didn't want to hear it. 

"I thank you for all the help you are giving us, me. But your excuse is that you are only helping us so that you can later destroy us and take all the fame. Don't deny it, it is true." She accused him forcefully. 

"I do deny it, for it is not the real reason why I do it." Stanton answered in his cool and sexy voice. "What we feel is real, and maybe it is you who is in denial." He took her hand and wrapped it in his.

Serena wanted to pull free. More than anything of the world she wanted to be free from this torment of being with Stanton--being away from Stanton, for both were equal in pain for her. She was transfixed in his eyes. He was not inviting her to join the Atrox, or trying to destroy her. No, he wanted her to see the human part of him, the part that loves her. 

She was pulled from this reverie, thankfully, by Tianna, who popped up at her side. "Stanton, let Serena go." She ordered. 

"Never" he simply answered. 

Derek appeared now, too, beside Serena. "Hey, let her go before I call the rest of the Goddesses." Derek knew of his girlfriend's, Tianna, powers and also about the Goddesses because Tianna saved his life, after she endangered it. 

With a smile and a promise of meeting again, Stanton let go of Serena's hand and walked away. 

"What was that all about?" Derek asked, brushing his red dreadlocks away from his face. Derek had just got back from visiting his grandmother in Ireland. He had spent two weeks there and knew nothing that had happened with Serena and the Hunters. 

Tianna answered for Serena, who was watching Stanton leave. "You missed a lot while you were on your trip." 


	18. The Prophecy

Serena was awakened by a simple melody played on some type of pipe. The quick paced notes floated above her head and made her question if she was in fact awake. To make sure she wasn't dreaming she opened her left eye, she found nothing out of the ordinary. Now more confident, she opened her right, and noticed a dark shadow in the corner by her balcony. 

Serena jumped to a sitting position and stifled a scream as the slow fife song came to a close. Serena could barely distinguish two hands falling from the face of the shadow in the corner. 

"Who are you?" Serena choked, trying to recover from her apparent shock. Then, the shadow stepped forward and immediately Serena recognized her: the girl from Planet Bang. 

The girl had on a new black dress that had black beads sparking along the hems. The dress looked Goth, yet classic, as if from the Renaissance. She placed her fife in a holder of black leather that was wrapped around her waist and shoulder. Still silent and half-masked in darkness, the girl with the bright green eyes walked slowly around Serena's room, touching a few objects and sometimes picking an item up to inspect it. 

Serena now asked a more important question: "What do you want?" 

The girl stopped walking and faced Serena. "To answer any questions you might wish to have answered." The girl's voice matched her beautiful hair: smooth and flowing like a stream. 

Serena did not have time to remember the question that was eating at her just a few hours ago at Planet Bang, so she asked a usual conversational question, "what's your name, who are you?" 

The girl sat down at the edge of Serena's bed. Serena noticed how the girl looked somewhat saddened at the question--or maybe it was the answer. 

"I am simply called Shadow, my real name has been lost for many centuries to all but me." She answered.

"Centuries?" Serena repeated. "If that is so, then why would you be working for someone like Raphael? Didn't you establish yourself?" She couldn't hide the suspicion in her eyes.

Serena could feel the anger welling up inside of Shadow, Serena thought she had struck a nerve. 

In a very controlled voice, Shadow responded. "There are certain obligations you owe to those who have converted you to the Atrox. One is not free from those obligations until your master lets you go."

Serena was surprised at herself; she actually pitied the Hunter. "So what would you do if you were free?" 

"Not this, I assure you. I would probable be a recluse out in the forest somewhere; trying my best to live in peace while the world becomes more like hell. Any other questions?"

Serena remembered now what she wanted to ask. "What is the Prophecy?" 

Shadow was prepared for this question. "The Prophecy." She repeated and drew in a long breath, getting ready to tell a long story, "It all started back in ancient times with the first generation of the Daughters of the Moon. The Daughter Arria's gift was to see the future."

Serena cut in, "like Jimena does?"

"Yes, but not really like premonitions. In her dreams, she saw what would come in the years ahead. She, like Jimena, saw battles that will arise with the Daughters in the near future, but she also saw more." She paused and let a small smile appear when she saw Serena's expression of wonder. "One night, she saw something very important, something that would change the world forever." 

"What?" Serena butted in, very interested. 

Shadow continued on again in her paced and clear narrative. "What she saw was of so much importance that she told no one. The Atrox believed that it was something for the good of the Atrox, therefore Arria did not want to tell anyone so that it would not come to pass. The Daughters, however, believed that it would be the destruction of the Atrox, and Arria did not tell so that it would come to pass."

"So nothing is known? They only think that?" Serena questioned. 

"Arria only spoke of the Prophecy once. She wrote this down on a scroll that has been lost for many ages, but all know what it says. 'For when the Prince seduces the One Daughter, the Greatness shall happen.'" Shadow ceased talking and looked up at the ceiling, lost in her own thought.

This, of course, made no sense to Serena. "What?" She said very annoyed. "What the Hell does that mean?" 

Shadow sighed, but didn't seem aggravated for Serena's ignorance. "Again, there are two ways to interpret this. The Atox believes that the word 'seduces' means to bring the goddess over to the Atrox and that the 'Greatness' would then be the incarnation of the Atrox into the Goddess's body. Then Evil on Earth shall reign, for the embodiment of the Atrox would rule over all and the Prince shall rise beside her. The Daughters, however, took it differently. They took 'seduce' to mean love. If the Prince and the One Daughter join together in love, the Atrox would be destroyed by that love. Then Peace on Earth shall reign, for all the evil shall be gone."

It all registered with Serena, everything that Raphael was trying to do. If he would bring Serena to the Atrox, she would not only become evil, but the living temple for the Atox. Raphael, then, would rise with her. But, if this was true, what was Stanton trying to do? Did he truly love her? Or is he just working her defenses down so that he may turn her to the Atrox as well? She then thought that Shadow could be lying, after all, she had never met her before. 'No,' she told herself, for she knew in her heart--or was it her mind--that this was true. All of it was true. 


	19. Last Night's Fight

Serena turned and faced Shadow, their eyes locking. Then Serena noticed it, that same little hint of gold that used to flick in the eyes of Stanton before he became the Dark Prince. Serena chose her words carefully and spoke slowly so that she would not offend Shadow, "you did not go to the Atox of your own will, did you?" 

Shadow quickly broke the intense star and nodded in the affirmative. "It took me because it knew of the great power that wielded within me. Power that was meant for good was then twisted for evil. I was a Daughter…" She let her words trail off, letting time for the important words to register in Serena's mind. 

Serena gasped at the words. Then, when the sudden realization hit her, she bolted upright again. "Then there is a good chance we could save you!" She practically shouted, "there is still hope for your rescuing!" 

Shadow shook her head sadly, "no, it is too late for me now. I have caused so much pain, seen so much destruction. The only peace I may have is playing my fife." She patted the small wooden pipe on the black strap. 

Serena was ready to contradict Shadow's claim, but was stopped due to a sudden gust of wind that just blew open her French doors that led to the balcony. The wind was strong and it wailed like a screaming child. It blew dust and dried leaves in a great swirl into the room. Serena and Shadow raised their hands and protected their eyes from the flying debris. 

Shadow shouted above the wail, "oh no! He knows I came to warn you!" the sound of terror in Shadow's voice frightened Serena even more. 

Serena quickly shouted a respond, "warn me about what?"

"He is coming for you soon. He will either make you join him, or destroy you. I am sorry. Because of me he has come for you sooner than I had expected. I wanted to give you time to get your friends."

"Why?" Serena shouted back, now holding onto her bedpost for balance. "Why do you want to help me?" But she didn't need an answer. If Serena were to destroy Raphael, Shadow would be free. 

The swirling wind intensified, throwing objects in Serena's room to the ground. Shadow was on the floor, holding onto the bed stand and Serena was clinging to her bedpost. Serena let out a blood-curling scream as a giant gust lifted her off her bed and towards the balcony. 

Without hesitation, the wind carried Serena out into the open. The wind ceased in the bedroom and Shadow got up on her wobbly feet. "Help me now!" Serena's voice called in her mind, "Get my friends and help me." Shadow bit her lip, uncertain on what to do. She patted the dirt off her new dress and found a nice rip along the back.

"That bastard!" She hissed. She turned on her heels and went off to find the Daughters.

Serena awoke with a jump. She had been knocked unconscious one mile from her house by a low hanging branch. That explains the intense throbbing headache she has. She slowly sits and steadies herself on the rough cement floor. Slowly, she looked around surveying her surroundings as she gently rubbed her hurting head. 

She was in a factory that much was for sure. "What is it with these guys and factories?" She thought to herself. 

Her senses told her she was not alone. The very fine hairs on the back of her neck were standing on their ends. 

"Careful, Goddess, don't over exert yourself." Raphael came around from behind her and kneeled by her side. "You were out for hours."

"Seconds or hours, it doesn't matter, my decision will never falter." She protested, glaring at him with hatred and disgust. 

He looked agitated, but remained calm, "and that is?"

"I will never join you." She said with all her might.

He chuckled at her; this fool was actually laughing at her. "You know its an 'either do or die' situation?

She lifted her head, showing that she is strong. "I do, it doesn't matter." 

"Fine then," he simply said. He stood up and dusted the dirt off his black shiny pants. "Shall we get this over with?" 

Serena closed her eyes as Raphael raised his pale hands. Energy surged between his crooked fingers into a large green fireball. Serena closed her eyes and braced herself. 'I will not let this guy get to me. If I must die, I shall not give him the pleasure of my scream.' She thought boldly to herself. 

The gathering of energy subsided. Suspense consumed Serena; she kept asking herself, 'when is he going to hit?' When she finally succumbed to the suspense, she opened her right eye. Raphael grinned at her and threw the blazing green orb of energy at Serena's ankles. To Serena's amazement, the green mesh took form of a dress. 

Simple at first, the dress began to turn lighter shades of green as delicate designs grew up around the bodice. Small glass beads formed in swirling designs, curling in and out, ending in a stitched leaf. When the gown grew to a dazzling pearly white, the design on the dress also finished itself. The long flowing skirt was of pure white silk. The low cut bodice was of the same white with the small glass beads in the design of ivy with leaves and flowers embroidered in white thread. The sleeves, made of a sheer, soft material, flowed the length of the gown with slits to where the elbow would be. 

Serena gaped at the dress before her; it was so beautiful. "Your shroud, my lady." Raphael said from across the room with malice in his voice. At this Serena looked away from the dress, and stared into the eyes of the enemy. 

"Aw," she began in heavy sarcasm, "you shouldn't have." As the words left her, a dull blue smoke enclosed Serena and she fell immediately into a deep sleep. 

"What the?" Serena awoke with a sever headache. "Was that all a dream?" She spoke to herself unknowingly. Upon opening her eyes, however, she soon remembered that, in fact, this was no dream. All of it was real. "Damn" she said to herself as she pulled her aching body to a sitting position. "I feel like I've been hit by a truck." Then she noticed it, the dress, it was on her. "That rat bastard!" She began, "How dare he!" 

"I did it with magic," Raphael's voice sounded from behind her, "No peeking, I promise." 

"How is it I find it hard to believe you? What did you do to me?" She asked when she found that she lacked the strength to stand. She felt his strong hands take her about the waist. He lifted her in one easy fluid motion. 

"A simple drug so that you will not find it in you to fight back. Try to relax." He picked her up and carried her effortlessly to a stone altar. He laid her on her back and fixed her dress so that it took shape around her. "Scared?" He asked.

"Minime!" She responded in Latin. She could tell by Raphael's expression that it surprised him as much as it surprised her. She, however, was able to hide her shock at the unfound knowledge of the 'dead' language. 

"Oh, the Goddess speaks Latin?" He regained his cool quickly. "You answer 'no' so hastily, which leads me to believe you lie. It doesn't matter though," he turned his back to her and walked over to a table eight feet ahead of her, "your fear means nothing to me. I was just curious." He messed around with some concoctions at the table, then returned to the altar. 

"In these movies these days, the villain always spoils his evil plan to the hero, or victim in some cases." He began, holding up as black cylinder and flashed his white grin. "I will do the same for you. You see, you are no use to me dead, I need to bring you to the Atrox, and I cannot do that if you are no longer alive." He paused here for effect. "But since you are so persistent on not joining me, I gander that I could just torture you till you are near death and too weak to resist. Sound okay to you? Good." He did not wait for her answer. He concentrated on the black cylinder and a blue flame emerged from the end. "Now lets get started, shall we?" He lowered his arm.

He held the flame just above Serena's right toe. She felt its heat immediately. 'Don't scream, don't scream.' She ordered herself. 

"Master!" Came a voice from the other side of the empty factory. "I have come." It was Shadow. She was wearing a black blouse with quarter length sleeves and killer black leather pants with flames rising from the cuffs. Her long, shiny black hair hung free and twisted around her waist as she walked quickly over to Raphael and Serena. "What do you bid of me?" She asked. 

"It's about time, Shadow." Raphael began. "I have several things you need to do. First you need to," Shadow took him by the arm and led him away from the altar, turning his back against Serena. 

"Its better that she is left in suspense, my lord." She explained. Serena noticed something. Shadow was inviting her into her mind, but why? Was this all part of his plan? 

Serena decided against it, it's too risky, she thought. Just then pair of strong, rough hands that went around her waist and neck startled her. The owner took her into him, for it was obviously a man, and cradled her to his chest. 

Serena looked at her savior now, and was surprised at who it was. "Shh," whispered Collin. "Like the dress" he commented and grinned. 

"Oh, shut up" Serena whispered back, letting a smile appear on her face. "What are you doing here? Oh, never mind that, get me outta her!" 

"No problem," then he nodded behind him. Serena looked to where he prompted her. There were the other Daughters, silently getting ready for battle in a dark corner. Then with his free hand, Collin pointed to the balcony in front of the old office. There Stanton and Babylon were standing. "Since I lack the powers to fight, my job is to get you out when they make their move." 

"Aw, big bro, that's so cute." Serena gave him an encouraging smile. 

"What the hell is going on here!?" Raphael's voice bellowed from across the room. Serena and Collin, snapped out of their quiet reverie, stared in horror as Raphael bounded towards them. A look of fury was on his face that Serena had never seen before. He stride was quickening now. Serena glanced nervously at Collin, who was looking back at Jimena. 

He was no more than twenty feet away when the earth began to quake. In response, the old, battered walls of the factory began to shake madly, matching the fury on Raphael's face. The rusty pipes aloft on the ceiling broke and water rained down on them. 

Raphael, Serena finally realized when he was close enough to see Raphael's eyes, was not stalking towards her and Collin, but the Daughters. "He's after you!" She shouted behind her. As Raphael passed the spot where they were crouching, he raised his hand made a small wave with his fingers. At this Collin flew up into the air, screaming obscenities all the while. Raphael than gave a flick with the same hand and in response, Collin flew across the vast factory and smashed into a pile of moldy crates. 

Raphael was now standing still in front of the Daughters. Serena gave herself a little push so she could see better. The Daughters were dressed to kill, which they were probably planning to do. Unfortunately, the broken pipes had caused all their hair to cling to their face and bodies and all their make up to wash away. 

To everyone's surprise, Raphael laughed when he faced them. "Come to stop me, have you?" He gave snort. "How can you be so naïve to think you can stop me now?" 

He continued to taunt them, but Serena's attention was pulled from them--to a loan shadow stalking towards her. "Shadow?" Serena said in a weak voice. She materialized, kneeling next to Serena. 

"They cannot save you, Serena" Shadow said, "it is not their Prophesy." 

Serena now understood. _She _alone had to fight Raphael. Serena nodded and Shadow helped her up. Serena wobbled, hanging on to Shadow for support, so she was aligned with Raphael's back. "Thanks." She whispered to Shadow, who, giving a small smile of encouragement, blurred and became shadow. 

"Serena! No!" Jimena yelled, causing Raphael to turn and face her. 

"I am the one who have to face him, Jimena. I am the one who has to destroy him. And _he_ knows it's true."

"Very good, little Goddess." Raphael sneered in response. In one fluid motion, he raised his hand. "_INCENDO_," he bellowed. A large green lightening bolt emerged from his palm, stretching for Serena with a frightening howl. 

"NO!" A voice screamed. Shadow had reappeared now in front of Serena. She took the hit to the abdomen and sank to the floor. Serena took advantage of Raphael's shock and used her powers. 

Serena's red energy was focused on where Raphael's heart should be. His stunned face looking down upon it. He knew he had lost. The red glow bounced off the water droplets and reached every corner of the old factory, causing Stanton some obvious discomfort. Until finally, with one scream of agony, Raphael blew apart into an evil green light and dust. 

When Serena ceased her powers, she swayed with exhaustion. She looked down to see Shadow. Serena fell on her knees and lifted Shadow's head on her lap. She looked up to see the Daughters along with Stanton and Babylon, holding Collin up between them, surrounding her. 

"I got shot." Shadow mumbled, "damn…How do I look?" She asked, not looking away from Serena. 

Serena looked down at Shadow's torn black dress, stained with blood. She then turned and looked at Shadow's knotted and askew hair. Serena was going to say she looked fine, but got cut off by Babylon.

"You look sexy, girl." He smiled down at her.

"Baby?" Shadow croaked, peering up at Babylon. 

"It's time for you to rest, Cassia." He answered simply. He bent down and picked her up, cradling her to his chest. He then spoke to her in Latin. 

Serena was very confused about this, but kept her mouth shut because she knew Shadow didn't have much time. 

The Daughters watched as Babylon prayed over Shadow's dying body. When he finished, Shadow broke the silence, "Pollicere te me numquam amare desistere." 

"Ita vero, Cassia, Ita vero." 

Cassia smiled and began to cry. "Now I can die in peace." With those final words, Shadow died. 


	20. Protector

Everyone went their separate ways after last night's battle. Collin and Serena supported each other as they wandered home. Stanton became shadow and crept toward his own house. Jimena drove herself home; the loud, rumbling music turned off. Catty and Tianna, whose skateboards were waiting outside, skated separately off into the night. Vanessa walked rather quickly to Michael's house, which was only a block away. They left Babylon alone in the factory holding Shadow, whose name was apparently Cassia. They all agreed to meet at Catty's house the next day to have all their question's answered. 

Serena and Collin arrived at Catty's house at one o'clock. Collin, still in some form of sleep, muttered a 'hello' and promptly plopped himself on Catty's sofa. Vanessa was already there, making batches and batches of cookies and coffee. 

"How'd ya sleep?" Vanessa asked, handing Serena a freshly baked cookie and a warm mug of coffee. 

"Horrible" Serena said truthfully. "I kept seeing her die in my dreams. Freaky." 

By one-thirty, all the Daughters had arrived. 

"So…" Serena began. 

"So?" Vanessa repeated confused.

"Who the hell was that chicka?" Tianna broke through the confusion.

"She was a Daughter, but then she was brought to the Atrox by Raphael. She was forced to serve him. But she went against him to help me." Serena explained.

"Why would she do something like that?" Catty wondered out loud.

"Because I saw Babylon with you." A voice from the door said. They all turned to face Shadow. She looked different, somehow. She was no longer wearing black, but white. Her long shimmering black hair was pulled into a ponytail and she had a smile on her face. Next to her was Babylon. 

"He was my lover back when I was a Daughter, I didn't know what he was, we all thought he was just a helper from our Mother. We felt an immediate attraction. The night he finally told me, I was hurt that he didn't tell me earlier, and my pain left me weak. That's how Raphael was able to bring me to the Atrox. But since I didn't go under my own free will, I retained very little of my old self. When I saw Serena with Babylon the one day, I knew that this would be a way to prove to him I was not evil, that I still had some goodness left in me."

"And thank you for it." Serena added. "But why aren't you…" 

"Dead?" Babylon cut in. "Well, I had a little something to do with that. When I saw her sacrifice, I knew there was some hope left for her. So I made her into an Angelic. She is a Protector Angelic, while I am a Guardian Angelic, there are all kinds. 

Babylon put his arm around her and Shadow glowed; so bright was her radiance that Serena had to look away. 

"That's great, Shadow." Vanessa congratulated her. 

"I am Cassia now, Shadow is lost forever." 

"Aw, am I late for this little love meeting?" A dark voice came from the kitchen doorway. 

"No, Stanton, but you weren't invited anyway." Jimena barked at him.

"Ouch, lets play nice, children." Stanton said coolly as he walked in. "Ew, looking good Cassia." He said with a grin.

Serena couldn't stand it any longer. She grabbed Stanton by the wrist and led him outside. "What the hell do you think you are doing! Showing up like this? It's hard enough as it is."

"Serena," Stanton began, in a soothing voice, "I know we cannot be together, but I want you to know this. I will always come for you. I will always love you. I will always protect you." 

He bent and kissed her on the forehead, and stalked away.   
"I know" Serena mouthed and fought back her tears. "I love you too."


End file.
